POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 


POLLY  AND  ANNE  FOLLOWED  THE  GUIDE. 
Polly  and  Eleanor.  Frontispiece — (Page  21) 


POLLY 
AND  ELEANOR 


BY 
LILLIAN  ELIZABETH  ROY 


Author  of 

POLLY  OF   PEBBLY   PIT,   POLLY  IN   NEW  YORK, 

POLLY   AND  HER   FRIENDS   ABROAD,    POLLY*S 

BUSINESS   VENTURE. 


ILLUSTRATED  BY 

H.  S.  BARBOUR 


NEW  YORK 

GROSSET  &  DUNLAP: 

PUBLISHERS 

Made  in  the  United  States  of  America 


COPYRIGHT,  1922,  BY 
GROSSET  &  DUNLAP 


CONTENTS 

CHAPTER  PACK 

I  ANOTHER  TRIP  TO  TOP  NOTCH    >,    »    >  1 

II  THE  CLAIM-JUMPERS     .     .     .     >:    >     .  22 

III  AT  CHOKO'S  FIND    .....>.  38 

IV  JOHN  AND  His  FRIEND  ARRIVE     ...  55 
V  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR  VISIT  THE  BEAVERS  81 

VI  THE  GIRLS  ENTERTAIN  GUESTS     ...  99 

VII  SEVERAL  MOMENTOUS  LETTERS      .     .     .  122 

VIII  POLLY-ELEANOR  COMPANY,  INC.     .     :.     .  143 

IX  JEB'S  SUNDAY  NIGHT  OFF      .     .     >:     .  162 

X  A  TRIP  TO  BUFFALO  PARK      .     .     >     .  181 

XI  A  WILD- WEST  COUNTY  FAIR    .     .     >     .  195 

XII  NOLLA'S  PLANS  DEVELOP     .....  208 

XIII  RIGGLEY  &  RATZGER  OF  NEW  YORK     .     .  226 

XIV  THE  VICTORY 247 

XV  COMINGS  AND  GOINGS     ......  262 

XVI  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR  START  OUT     .     .  275 


2088 1 50 


POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

CHAPTER  I 

ANOTHER  TRIP  TO  TOP   NOTCH 

Six  intensely  interested  individuals  sat  about 
the  supper-table  in  the  living  room  at  Pebbly  Pit 
Ranch-house,  the  evening  of  the  day  they  rode  to 
Oak  Creek  to  file  the  claim  on  the  gold  mine. 
Sary,  the  maid-of-all-work,  had  the  supper  ready 
for  the  weary  riders  when  they  returned  from 
their  trip. 

Having  served  the  dessert,  Sary  went  out  to  the 
barn  to  help  Jeb,  the  foreman  on  the  ranch,  with 
the  horses  which  had  just  come  in  from  the  long 
day's  work.  So  the  group  about  the  table  felt 
free  to  talk  as  they  liked.  But  Polly  Brewster 
and  her  friend  Eleanor  Maynard  were  almost 
talked  out  by  the  time  they  finished  the  last  bit 
of  Sary's  delicious  dessert;  and  Barbara  Maynard 
tried  her  best  to  hide  a  yawn  behind  her  hand, 
while  Anne  Stewart,  the  pretty  teacher  who  was 
the  fourth  member  in  the  party  that  spent  a  night 


2  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

in  the  cave,  was  eager  to  continue  planning  for 
the  future  of  the  mine,  but  Nature  demanded  rest 
after  the  three  days'  excitement. 

Finally,  Polly  turned  to  her  father  and  said: 
"I  wish  we  could  see  John's  face  when  he  reads 
that  telegram!" 

"If  we  had  only  dared  word  it  plainly,  there 
sure  would  be  something  queer  to  laugh  at  when 
John  read  it.  But  we  had  to  cipher  it,  you  know," 
chuckled  Sam  Brewster. 

"I  can't  see  why  such  foolish  fear  of  talking 
about  it  is  entertained  by  all  you  folks,"  declared 
Barbara,  loftily. 

"Can't  you?  Well,  then,  Bob,  Ah'll  tell  you 
plainly  that  that  message  had  to  be  camouflaged, 
as  we  are  not  taking  any  risks  on  having  your  claim 
}umped  over,  night.  If  we  sent  a  wire  to  John 
telling  him  plainly  that  you  g^rls  discovered  a  vein 
of  gold  on  Top  Notch  Trail,  every  last  rascal  in 
Oak  Creek  would  hit  the  trail  before  that  message 
was  delivered,"  replied  Mr,  Brewster. 

"Even  as  it  is,  I  suppose  every  one  who  can 
read  the  records  at  Oak  Creek  will  start  out  at 
once,  so  as  to  stake  new  claims  as  near  to  Mon- 
tresor's  Mine  as  possible;  perhaps  they'll  try  to 
pick  up  some  nuggets  from  your  claim,  as  well," 
added  Mrs.  Brewster. 


ANOTHER  TRIP  TO  TOP  NOTCH   3 

"Then,  when  word  spreads  around  the  coun^ 
try — and  such  news  always  travels  like  lightning — 
every  gambler  and  bunco  man  in  Wyoming  and 
Colorado  will  be  seen  camping  on  Top  Notch 
Trail,  each  trying  in  his  own  way  to  wheedle 
money  or  gold-dust  from  the  unwary  ones," 
laughed  Mr.  Brewster. 

"There  now,  Daddy!  You've  laughed,  so  I 
know  your  spell  of  worry  is  over  with.  Won't 
you  tell  us  what  made  you  so  serious?"  exclaimed 
Polly. 

"Ah  was  trying  to  plan  for  the  best  way  to 
avoid  trouble  over  this  claim;  and  at  the  same 
time  protect  our  own  rights,  and  any  rights  Old 
Montresor's  family  might  have  in  this  re-discov- 
ery. That  is  why  Ah  insisted  upon  Simms  being 
one  of  our  party,  to-morrow ;  and  the  sheriff  with 
his  stalwart  son,  too.  They  are  both  strong, 
trusty  men,  and  with  Simms,  Jeb  and  myself,  we 
ought  to  be  able  to  hold  our  own  in  case  of  an 
argument  up  there." 

"Oh,  Mr.  Brewster!  Do  you  mean  there  is 
likely  to  be  a  fight,  and  shooting?"  cried  Barbara, 
horrified  at  the  very  idea. 

"Not  so  that  you-all  can  notice  it — if  we  get 
there  first.  But  let  those  claim-jumpers  camp  on 
our  grounds  first,  and  we-all  may  have  to  use  gun- 


4  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

persuasion  to  move  them  on  to  safer  ground." 

"Dear  me,  I  think  it  is  going  to  be  more  fun 
than  a  movie-picture  play  in  the  filming!"  ex- 
claimed Eleanor,  her  eyes  shining  with  excite- 
ment. 

"I  hope  we  won't  have  the  same  kind  of  gun- 
play that  we  see  in  the  wild-west  films,"  hinted 
Anne  Stewart,  hitherto  a  listener. 

"Would  you  rather  remain  here,  Anne?"  asked 
Barbara,  with  an  eager  expression  as  if  to  say: 
"  'I  hope  you  do — then  I  will  stay  with  you.' ' 

"I  should  say  no!  I  wouldn't  miss  the  picnic 
we  are  going  to  have,  to-morrow,  for  anything  in 
Colorado !"  declared  Anne,  emphatically. 

Mrs.  Brewster  laughed  at  the  young  teacher's 
vehement  tones,  and  then  turned  to  her  husband 
with  a  suggestion, 

"Sam,  what  do  you  think  of  sending  Jeb  on 
before,  in  the  morning,  to  tell  Rattle-Snake  Mike 
he  must  act  as  guide  and  cook  for  us  while  we  are 
on  the  mountain?  He  is  the  cleverest  Indian 
anywhere  about,  you  know." 

"Just  the  thing,  Mary!  Ah'm  mighty  glad 
you-all  thought  of  it.  Jeb  can  ride  on  whiles 
we-all  branch  off  at  Bear  Forks  for  the  Old  In- 
dian Trail.  Then  Mike  and  Jeb  can  catch  up 
with  us." 


ANOTHER  TRIP  TO  TOP  NOTCH   5 

"I  don't  know  about  that,  Sam,"  returned  Mrs. 
Brewster,  thoughtfully.  "I'd  rather  see  Jeb 
start  from  here  about  four  o'clock,  so  Mike  and 
he  can  meet  us  at  five-thirty  at  the  school-house." 

"You  must  have  some  good  reason  for  that," 
ventured  Polly. 

"Yes,  Mike  may  hear  about  this  claim  and 
leave  his  cabin  early,  so  as  to  act  as  guide  to 
strangers  who  will  be  glad  to  pay  him  any  price 
just  to  get  him  and  his  wonderful  scouting  ex- 
perience." 

"Right  as  usual,  Mary!  Ah'll  run  out,  right 
now,  and  tell  Jeb  he'd  better  get  to  bed  if  he  has 
to  be  up  before  four,"  exclaimed  Mr.  Brewster, 
starting  for  the  bedroom  over  the  barn  where  he 
knew  Jeb  would  be. 

"And  we  had  better  go  to  bed,  too,  so  we  can 
be  up  and  have  breakfast  out  of  the  way  before 
the  horses  are  brought  to  the  door,"  suggested 
Mrs.  Brewster,  leading  the  way  to  the  front  door 
to  look  at  the  night  sky. 

"Why,  it  isn't  eight  o'clock,"  complained  Bar- 
bara. 

"No,  but  eren  that  leaves  us  less  than  eight 
hours'  sleep.  After  such  exciting  days  as  we 
have  been  through,  we  need  a  good  full  night's 
rest,"  replied  Anne. 


"Chances  are  Nolla  and  I  won't  close  an  eye! 
What,  with  gold  mines,  and  John,  and  the  Lari- 
mer boys,  and  Ken  Evans  coming  to  town — and 
claim-jumpers,  and  everything!"  laughed  Polly. 

"You  mean  that  young  stranger  we  met  at  Oak 
Creek?"  asked  Barbara,  frigidly. 

"Yes, — the  one  who  looked  so  pleasant  but 
forlorn,"  said  Eleanor,  sympathetically. 

"His  name  was  Kenneth  Evans,  you  know, 
Bob,"  explained  Polly,  innocently. 

Eleanor  and  Anne  exchanged  glances  and 
smiled,  for  they  understood  that  Barbara  meant 
to  be  condemnatory  in  her  manner;  but  Polly,  in 
her  very  guilelessness,  countered  the  city  girl's  dis- 
paragement. 

"It's  too  bad  we  couldn't  have  had  him  come 
home  with  us,"  added  Eleanor,  teasingly,  to  Bar- 
bara. 

"Dear  me,  Nolla !  By  the  time  I  get  you  back 
to  Chicago  you  will  need  a  complete  training  in 
social  behavior  again!"  declared  Barbara,  frown- 
ing at  her  younger  sister. 

But  her  remark  merely  called  forth  a  merry 
laugh  from  the  light-hearted  girl.  Mrs.  Brews- 
ter  then  started  the  usual  preparations  for  bed, 
and  the  group  followed  her  example. 


ANOTHER  TRIP  TO  TOP  NOTCH   7 

For  the  benefit  of  any  on£  who  has  not  been 
fortunate  enough  to  become  acquainted  with  our 
western  friends,  in  the  first  book  of  this  series, 
we  wifl  introduce  you  while  the  girls  are  soundly 
sleepteg. 

Polly  Brewster,  a  girl  just  past  fourteen,  was 
a  true  type  of  the  honest,  ambitious  ranchers  of 
the  Rocky  Mountains  of  Colorado.  Her  home, 
the  extensive  farm  in  the  crater  of  an  extinct  vol- 
cano, was  called  Pebbly  Pit  because  of  the  giant 
cliffs  of  colored  stones  guarding  the  entrance  trail. 
This  ranch  was  about  eleven  miles  from  Oak 
Creek,  the  mining  settlement  and  railroad  station 
for  about  a  thousand  inhabitants,  where  all  shop- 
ping had  to  be  done.  The  town  was  much  like 
other  rough,  half-civilized  western  settlements, 
consisting  of  a  post  office,  a  bank,  the  sheriff's 
office,  and  several  saloons.  A  general  store  was 
maintained  in  connection  with  the  post  office,  and 
here  one  must  buy  anything  needed  for  house  o;r 
farm.  The  Brewsters,  being  affluent  ranchers, 
ordered  their  clothing,  house-furnishings,  and 
many  tools  or  luxuries  by  mail,  from  illustrated 
catalogues.  But  the  rough  road  from  the  ranch 
to  the  town  post  office,  being  hard  going  in  a 
heavy  ranch-wagon,  often  caused  the  Brewsters 


8  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

to  forego  a  mail  order  on  cosmopolitan  stores 
rather  than  drive  in  and  cart  the  goods  home 
from  Oak  Creek. 

Polly  had  just  completed  her  grammar  course 
at  the  little  Bear  Forks'  school-house  where  Anne 
Stewart  had  taught  two  years  previous  to  this 
summer.  Polly  had  never  been  elsewhere  than 
at  Oak  Creek  and  now  she  yearned  to  attend 
High  School  in  Denver. 

Anne  Stewart  lived  in  Denver,  and  for  the  past 
year  had  been  tutoring  Eleanor  Maynard,  while 
the  girl  and  her  older  sister  Barbara  boarded  with 
Mrs.  Stewart.  The  Maynard  girls  were  from 
Chicago,  but  Eleanor,  who  was  fourteen,  was  very 
delicate,  so  the  doctor  had  recommended  a  high 
altitude  for  her. 

Anne  Stewart  was  helping  her  brother  Paul 
through  a  college  in  Chicago,  and  during  her  visit 
to  him,  at  the  end  of  his  first  year,  she  met  his 
friends — John  Brewster  who  was  Polly's  older 
brother;  Tom  Latimer  a  promising  young  engi- 
neer from  New  York;  and  Pete  Maynard  who 
was  a  brother  to  Eleanor  and  Barbara.  It  was 
through  this  means  that  the  Maynards  heard  of 
the  Stewarts*  home  in  Denver,  and  anxiously 
begged  Anne  to  take  the  two  girls  into  her  home 
circle.  As  the  salary  offered  for  this  privilege 


ANOTHER  TRIP  TO  TOP  NOTCH   9 

was  so  munificent,  the  young  teacher  eagerly  ac- 
cepted, and  then  found  her  youngest  charge  a 
lovable  and  merry  girl. 

The  two  Chicago  girls  had  returned  home  for 
a  few  months,  but  Eleanor  could  not  stand  the 
high  winds  and  stubborn  climate  of  Chicago,  so 
the  doctor  again  ordered  her  to  spend  a  summer 
in  the  mountains  of  Colorado.  In  distraction, 
Mr.  Maynard  begged  Anne  Stewart  to  arrange 
everything,  and  thus  it  was  that  these  two  society 
girls  came,  with  Anne,  to  board  with  Polly's  fam- 
ily at  Pebbly  Pit  ranch. 

The  Brewsters  were  considered  very  wealthy 
in  land  and  cattle,  to  say  nothing  of  the  Rainbow 
Cliffs,  for  which  a  New  York  financier  had  of- 
fered them  half  a  million  dollars  for  part  interest 
in  mining  them.  But  Sam  Brewster  could  afford 
to  refuse  such  destruction  to  his  beautiful  estate. 
Polly  had  never  had  city-made  clothing,  nor  had 
she  the  slightest  idea  of  city-ways,  until  the  May- 
nard girls'  advent  to  Pebbly  Pit.  But  she  had 
had  years  of  thrilling  experiences  to  her  credit — 
experiences  with  wild-life  of  all  kinds,  of  moun- 
tain-climbing, of  adventures  of  other  sorts,  to  say 
nothing  about  knowledge  of  farming  and  domestic 
animals.  This  outdoor  life  gave  her  abundant 
health,  strength,  and  the  beauty  of  a  fine  com- 


10  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

plexion,  clear  eyes,  luxuriant  glossy  hair,  and  a 
graceful  well-formed  figure  that  was  all  the  more 
attractive  because  of  the  charms  her  adolescence 
promised. 

That  very  day  had  been  spent  in  Oak  Creek  in 
filing  the  claim  to  Montresor's  Mine,  and  just  as 
the  parry  started  for  home,  they  had  met  the 
young  stranger,  Kenneth  Evans,  who  sought 
Carew's  Surveying  Camp,  which  was  known  to  be 
located  near  Yellow  Jacket  Pass.  The  youth 
was  directed  how  to  find  Jake,  the  driver  of 
Carew's  wagon,  and  then  he  was  invited  to  visit 
Pebbly  Pit,  on  Sunday. 

As  Polly  and  Eleanor  had  predicted,  they  were 
so  excited  over  the  events  that  promised  such 
thrills  on  the  morrow,  that  they  slept  little  that 
night,  but  tossed  and  talked  most  of  the  time. 
However,  when  the  call  sounded  for  them  all  to 
awake  and  dress  for  the  mountain  trip,  it  found 
that  these  two  girls  were  fast  asleep  and  loath  to 
get  up. 

"Good  gracious,  Anne!  My  wrist  watch  says 
it's  four  o'clock  I  You  don't  suppose  we  have  to 
get  up  at  this  awful  hour?"  complained  Barbara, 
rubbing  her  eyes. 

Anne  was  already  up  and  hurriedly  dressing. 
"Any  one  who  is  not  ready  to  start  when  the  man 


brings  the  horses  around  to  the  door,  remains  be- 
hind, you  know." 

That  brought  Polly  and  Eleanor  out  of  bed 
with  a  hop,  as  there  was  only  a  wooden  partition 
between  the  two  rooms,  and  Anne's  words  were 
plainly  heard  by  them. 

"If  there  was  the  least  thing  to  do  if  I  stayed 
here,  I'd  not  go  again  for  anything.  But  I  should 
die  of  ennui  if  I  had  to  be  entertained  by  Sary 
for  three  whole  days,"  grumbled  Barbara. 

The  very  idea  of  Sary,  the  "house  helper,"  en- 
tertaining Barbara,  for  whom  she  felt  such  scorn, 
caused  mirth  in  the  adjoining  room. 

Eleanor  called  out:  "More  than  likely  Sary 
feels  as  glad  to  know  that  you're  going,  as  we 
would  be  to  have  you  stay  behind." 

"Come,  come,  Bob !  You  must  get  up  and 
dress !"  now  urged  Anne,  as  she  finished  her  dress- 
ing and  turned  to  leave  the  room. 

The  purple  gleams  of  the  western  dawn  shot 
the  heavens  of  blue  and  gold,  as  Jeb  brought  the 
sturdy  horses  from  the  barn.  He  had  given  care- 
ful attention  to  the  trappings  and  shoes  of  the 
various  mounts,  and  finding  each  one  in  splendid 
condition,  started  for  the  house. 

An  unusual  hubbub  came  from  the  living-room 
where  baskets  of  food  and  outfits  were  waiting. 


i2  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

The  moment  Jeb  was  hailed,  however,  the  noisy 
girls  ran  out  to  look  over  their  horses. 

"Why,  Jeb!  Isn't  Noddy  going  this  time?" 
asked  Polly. 

"Not  ef  you-all  want  her  to  keep  any  breath 
in  her  skin.  Ain't  she  eena-most  done  up  from 
that  other  trip?"  retorted  Jeb,  who  was  the  "gen- 
eral-man" on  the  ranch.  Having  been  with  the 
Brewsters  since  he  was  a  boy  of  twelve,  he  felt 
that  he  was  one  of  the  family  and  he  treated 
Polly  as  if  she  were  a  younger  sister. 

"Never  mind  Noddy,  this  time,  Polly,  but  let 
Jeb  jump  into  the  saddle  and  start  off.  He'K 
never  reach  Mike's  cabin  if  you  keep  on  arguing 
about  the  burros,"  said  Mrs.  Brewster,  coming 
out  to  call  them  to  breakfast. 

Jeb  had  gone  on  to  secure  the  company  of 
Rattle-Snake  Mike,  and  Mr.  Brewster  sat  im- 
patiently on  his  horse,  waiting  to  guide  the  party 
of  women,  when  all  but  Barbara  were  ready;  then 
she  came  out  while  still  munching  her  tardy 
breakfast. 

As  the  riders  passed  the  Rainbow  Cliffs,  the 
rays  of  the  rising  sun  gilded  their  peaks,  and  the 
girls  exclaimed  at  the  beauty  of  the  stones  as 
they  reflected  the  myriad  colors  of  a  rainbow. 
Then  on  down  through  the  Devil's  Causeway  and 


ANOTHER  TRIP  TO  TOP  NOTCH     13 

out  on  the  Sand  Trail,  rode  the  adventurers,  un- 
til they  saw  Jeb  and  Mike  riding  to  meet  them. 

"Mike  says  we-all  ain't  the  fust  ones  to  start 
up  Grizzly  Slide,  this  mornin',"  said  Jeb,  the  mo- 
ment he  was  within  hearing. 

"U-um!     Plenty  fool  go  by!"  grunted  Mike. 

Mike  was  an  entirely  new  type  to  the  city  girls, 
and  they  studied  him  with  interest.  He  was  a 
swarthy-looking  Indian;  perhaps,  as  Mr.  Brew- 
ster  said,  because  he  smoked  himself  brown.  He 
always  rode  his  famous  Indian  pony  and  carried 
an.  evil-looking  gun,  besides  the  revolvers  in  his 
belt.  Another  weapon  he  had,  as  evil  but  not 
quite  so  fatal  to  others  as  the  gun — and  that  was 
his  old  pipe,  as  black  as  the  Asiatic  plague. 

Mike  was  a  descendant  of  a  famous  Chieftain, 
so  he  seldom  noticed  the  miners  or  common  na- 
tives about  Oak  Creek,  but  he  considered  himself 
an  equal  of  educated  people  like  the  Brewsters. 
Hence  his  willingness  to  act  as  guide  for  this 
party,  after  he  had  refused  tempting  offers  from 
the  "scorned"  early  that  morning. 

"Now  we'll  turn  off  at  the  Forks  and  ride  fast 
to  meet  Simms  and  his  party,"  advised  Mr.  Brew- 
ster,  when  they  reached  the  place  where  the  trails 
forked. 

"Mike  says  there's  the  old  Indian  Trail  up  the 


14  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

mountain,  that  cuts  off  half  the  distance  to  the 
Slide,"  called  Jeb,  from  the  front. 

"Him  bad  trail — no  like  Top  Notch,"  warned 
the  Indian. 

"Whereabouts  will  we  hit  it,  Mike?"  asked  Mr. 
Brewster. 

"Onny  Mike  say — him  secret  Indian  Trail,"  ex- 
plained the  red-man,  ever  faithful  to  his  ancestors. 

"Well,  will  we  pass  Pine  Tree  where  we  are 
to  meet  Simms  and  the  sheriff?"  added  Mrs. 
Brewster. 

"Nal  him  run  away  from  Pine  Tree.  But 
him  save  half-day  riding." 

Mr.  Brewster  silently  considered  this  possibil- 
ity for  a  few  moments,  then  turned  to  his  wife, 
and  said:  "Mary,  it  seems  most  important  just 
now  for  us  to  get  to  the  cave  before  others  reach 
it,  as  we  must  stake  out  additional  claims  adjoin- 
ing the  mine,  in  order  to  protect  the  rights  of  the 
girls.  Of  course,  we  must  have  Mike  show  us 
his  secret  trail,  and  I  will  go  to  escort  the  girls, 
but  you  and  Jeb  might  ride  on  to  Pine  Tree  to 
meet  Simms'  party.  Then  ride  with  them  up 
along  Top  Notch  Trail.  We  will  all  meet  at 
Four  Mile  Blaze." 

"I  was  about  to  suggest  the  same  plan,  Sam; 
but  I  won't  need  Jeb  with  me.  I'm  so  used  to 


ANOTHER  TRIP  TO  TOP  NOTCH     15 

this  road  that  I  am  perfectly  safe.  It  is  the  Trail 
that  will  be  hazardous  to  a  lone  rider,  when  once 
the  outlaws  hear  of  this  strike.  But  I  will  have 
Mr.  Simms  and  the  other  men  with  me,  so  every- 
thing will  be  safe  and  all  right,"  replied  Mrs. 
Brewster. 

After  a  hasty  good-by,  Mrs.  Brewster  rode 
away,  and  the  others  in  the  party  followed  after 
Mike  who  led  up  a  hitherto  unknown  trail  to 
Grizzly  Slide.  It  was  so  over-grown  that  no  one 
but  an  Indian  could  ever  find  a  way  through; 
however,  Mike  was  an  adept  in  this  line. 

"I  have  been  wondering  if  this  could  have  been 
the  trail  Mr.  Montresor  discovered  the  day  he 
approached  his  gold  mine  from  the  valley,"  said 
Polly,  as  she  followed  close  at  Mike's  heels. 

"You  may  have  hit  the  nail  on  the  head,  Poll. 
It  always  has  been  a  question  whether  Montresor 
was  quite  sane,  because  he  insisted  that  he  rode 
up  a  strange  trail  that  was  over-grown  with  jun- 
gle before  he  came  upon  the  ravine  that  held  his 
gold  mine,"  added  Mr.  Brewster. 

"Humph!  Him  good  old  scout,"  came  from 
Mike. 

"I'm  glad  to  hear  you  say  so,  Mike,  because 
I  liked  him  so  much!"  sighed  Polly,  and  tears 
filled  her  eyes  at  the  memory  of  her  old  friend. 


1 6  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

"Patsy  good  scout,  too.  Solly  dem  dead," 
Mike  added. 

Conversation  now  became  impossible,  as  Mike 
rode  far  in  advance  for  some  reason  best  known 
to  himself,  and  the  trail  was  so  steep  and  rough 
that  it  took  each  rider  all  his  attention  to  keep  in 
the  saddle.  However,  the  flora  and  fauna  were 
so  interesting  that  the  girls  endured  many  a  jar 
and  jolt  for  the  sake  of  seeing  them. 

Reaching  Four  Mile  Blaze  they  found  they 
had  saved  over  half  the  distance  it  would  have 
been  to  ride  up  over  Top  Notch  Trail;  and  this 
pleased  Mr.  Brewster  tremendously.  He  had 
just  turned  in  his  saddle  to  call  out  to  the  girls 
behind  him  when  Mike  held  up  a  warning  hand. 

Every  one  looked  at  him  to  see  what  he  had 
discovered.  He  grunted  unpleasantly,  and  slid 
from  his  horse.  He  sprawled  out  on  the  ground 
and  placed  his  ear  close  to  the  earth.  Every  one 
sat  still,  waiting  to  hear  the  report,  or  cause,  of 
this  unusual  behavior. 

The  Indian  listened  attentively  for  a  time,  then 
got  up  and  examined  the  trail  along  Top  Notch, 
as  far  back  as  the  blazed  tree.  There  he  placed 
his  ear  to  the  ground  again,  and  listened  for  a 
longer  time  than  at  first.  Then  he  got  up  slowly 


ANOTHER  TRIP  TO  TOP  NOTCH     17 

and  crept  about  examining  the  bushes,  the  broken 
twigs,  rocks,  and  even  the  grass. 

The  girls  watched  him  with  intense  interest,  as 
Polly  had  told  them  of  the  wonderful  scouting 
instinct  Mike  possessed,  and  now  they  were  go- 
ing to  have  it  demonstrated  to  them.  Having 
satisfied  himself,  Mike  came  over  to  Mr.  Brew- 
ster  and  announced,  abruptly: 

"Tree  miner  gone  aleddy — two  tenderfut 
comin'." 

"Three  up  there  already!  By  the  Great 
Horned  Spoon!  how  did  they  do  it?"  cried  Sam 
Brewster,  aghast  at  the  idea  that  perhaps  they 
would  have  trouble  when  they  reached  Polly's 
mine. 

"Maybe  the  three  gone  on  ahead  have  no  idea 
that  we  found  gold  up  there.  Maybe  they  are 
after  pelts,  or  some  other  thing,"  said  Anne 
Stewart. 

Mike  grinned  complacently,  for  he  had  spoken. 

"How  do  you  know  those  three  are  miners, 
Mike?"  asked  Polly. 

The  Indian  pointed  to  the  ground  where  an 
imprint  of  a  miner's  boot  was  plainly  seen.  Only 
the  miners  at  Oak  Creek  wore  such  spiked  heels, 
the  ranchers  and  other  citizens  being  satisfied 


i  8  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

with  heavy  leather  soles.  The  foot-print  pointed 
towards  the  Slide — not  away  from  it. 

"That's  only  one,  Mike,  and  you  said  there 
were  three!"  exclaimed  Anne,  triumphantly. 

"Tree  hass  go  by — see."  Mike  pointed  out 
three  different  kinds  of  horse-shoe  imprints. 

"One  hoss  carry  pack  an'  go  lame.  Two  hoss 
all  light." 

"How  do  you  know  he  is  lame — and  maybe 
he  isn't  packed,"  Eleanor  said. 

Mike  sniffed  derisively,  and  pointed  at  the 
lighter  impression  of  one  hind  foot.  Then  he 
showed  his  admiring  audience  how  a  slight  rip  in 
a  flour-sack  allowed  the  contents  to  trickle  down 
upon  the  ground  at  each  limp  the  lame  horse  gave. 

Mike  now  said  to  Mr.  Brewster:  "Dem  go 
slow — lame  hoss  no  go  fas',  mebbe  jus'  ahead." 

"If  we  ride  on  we  can  catch  up  with  them!" 
eagerly  exclaimed  Anne. 

Mike  shook  his  head  and  lifted  a  finger  fof 
silence.  Then  the  girls  heard  a  faint  dip-clop 
of  hoof-beats  on  the  rocky  trail  leading  along 
Top  Notch. 

"Two  tenderfut  'mos'  catch  up.  We-all  wait 
an'  talkee,"  suggested  Mike,  settling  himself  in 
his  saddle  to  await  the  riders. 

"Mike's  right,  because  they  will  only  follow  us 


ANOTHER  TRIP  TO  TOP  NOTCH     19 

and  find  out  where  our  claim  is  located,  if  we 
start  on  now,"  added  Polly. 

Mr.  Brewster  shook  his  head.  "Ah  reckon 
you-all  talk  sense  but  Ah  would  offer  an  amend- 
ment to  your  plan :  to  have  Polly  and  Anne  take 
Jeb  for  an  escort  and  ride  on  at  once.  Let  the 
horses  have  their  head  and  get  to  the  cave  as  soon 
as  you  can.  Hold  the  fort  until  we-all  join  you. 
We-all  will  see  these  two  men  and  find  out  what 
they  are  after." 

"Daddy,  you  must  remember  a  grizzly  bear 
lives  in  that  cave.  He  may  have  been  injured 
but  he  may  not  have  died,  the  other  night.  I 
have  my  small  rifle  but  Anne  hasn't  any  weapon 
at  all.  As  for  Jeb — he's  great  on  the  farm,  but 
for  this  work,  huh!  Then  there  are  those  three 
miners  who  are  up  ahead:  they  wouldn't  hesitate 
to  put  two  mere  girls  out  of  their  way,  if  we 
interfered  with  their  staking  our  mine  or  jumping 
our  claims,"  said  Polly. 

Mike  smiled  and  expressed  his  opinion. 
"Miss'r  Brooser  wait  wid  two  ten'erfut,  an'  Mike 
go  wid  leedle  leddies.  Ef  cabe  hab  trouble  of 
grizzle  er  miner,  Mike  shoot." 

"Good!  And  Ah'll  wait  for  Simms  and  the 
others,  and  then  come  after  you-all,"  agreed  Mr. 
Brewster. 


20  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

"I  won't  go  with  Mike  if  there  is  any  danger 
at  the  cave.  I  didn't  come  to  the  Rockies  to  be 
killed!"  declared  Barbara. 

"Daddy,  you  must  keep  Eleanor  and  Barbara 
here  with  you  and  Jeb,  and  wait  for  mother  and 
the  sheriff's  men.  Anne  and  I  will  go  with  Mike 
and  see  that  our  rights  are  protected,"  now  said 
Polly. 

"I  have  as  much  right  to  go  with  you,  Polly,  as 
Anne  has.  Why  must  I  remain  here  with  Bob?" 
demanded  Eleanor. 

"I  know  that,  Nolla,  but  three  of  us  will  be  too 
many — especially  as  Anne  and  you  have  no  fire- 
arms. I  may  need  Anne  to  help  me  load  but 
you  can't  even  do  that.  So  it  will  be  far  better 
for  us  all  if  you  remain  here.  Mike  will  not 
have  to  bother  over  so  many  of  us,  then,"  ex- 
plained Polly. 

"But  everything  may  be  safe  at  the  cave,  and 
all  this  worry  about  fighting  may  be  a  farce," 
argued  Eleanor. 

"In  that  case  Mike  will  leave  us  safely  there 
and  come  back  to  guide  you-all  to  us.  Once  we 
are  safe  on  that  ledge  with  a  pile  of  dry  wood  in 
front  of  the  entrance  to  the  cave,  we  can  defy 
the  whole  country." 

"All  right!     Hurry  away  and  get  on  to  that 


ANOTHER  TRIP  TO  TOP  NOTCH  21 

ledge  before  any  more  rascals  steal  a  march  on. 
you.  But  be  sure  to  send  Mike  back  for  us, 
the  moment  Anne  and  you  arrive  there  and  find 
everything  is  all  right,"  replied  Eleanor. 

So  Mike  spurred  his  broncho  along  the  trail, 
while  Polly  and  Anne  rode  after  him.  Soon  they 
disappeared  around  the  bend  where  giant  pines 
formed  a  wall  on  either  side  of  the  narrow  going. 


CHAPTER  II 

THE  CLAIM-JUMPERS 

THE  moment  the  three  had  passed  out  of  sight, 
Sam  Brewster  jumped  from  his  horse  and  led 
him  over  to  the  great  tree  that  caused  the  trail 
to  turn  aside  and  run  around  it.  He  looped 
the  reins  over  his  arm  and  placed  his  hands  in 
his  coat  pockets.  As  he  leaned  against  the  tree- 
trunk  nibbling  nonchalantly  at  a  sprig  of  grass, 
a  tenderfoot  would  never  have  dreamed  that  his 
fingers  were  tensely  held  against  the  triggers  of 
the  revolvers  hidden  in  his  pockets. 

Soon  after  Mr.  Brewster  had  taken  his  stand 
where  he  could  see  the  first  appearance  of  any 
one  coming  up  the  trail,  two  riders  approached 
eagerly  scanning  the  large  trees,  in  evident  search 
of  something.  As  they  came  to  the  giant  tree 
where  the  rancher  waited,  both  men  started  in  sur- 
prise. 

"How-dy,   friends?     Out  early  this  morning, 

22 


THE  CLAIM-JUMPERS  23 

eh?"  was  the  greeting  the  two  amazed  men  re- 
ceived from  the  alert  man  at  the  tree. 

"Oh — oh,  yes!"  stammered  one,  plainly  un- 
easy. 

"Hoh,  it's  Sam  Brewster  of  Pebbly  Pit,  ain't 
it?"  said  the  other,  also  confused  in  his  manner. 

"Right  you  are,  Hank.  You  see,  when  a  man 
has  to  attend  to  the  girls'  gold  mine,  he  has  to  be 
up  right  early  to  forestall  the  plans  of  any  claim- 
jumpers  who  read  the  records  at  Oak  Creek, 
yesterday,  after  we  left  there.  That's  why  I  got 
a  posse  to  guard  the  place.  I  reckon,  now,  Hank, 
that  your  boss  sent  you-all  on  to  help  we-all  up 
yonder,  eh?"  laughed  Mr.  Brewster,  tantalizingly, 
as  he  recognized  Hank  to  be  the  clerk  at  the 
filing  office  in  Oak  Creek. 

The  man  Hank  laughed  also,  but  a  discordant 
note  rang  through  his  forced  merriment.  "We- 
all  ain't  claim-jumpers,  Mr.  Brewster,  but  it 
seemed  so  quare  to  find  Old  Montresor's  Mine 
hed  ben  found  again,  that  Ah  sez  to  my  pal,  here, 
'How'd  you-all  like  to  run  up  to  the  Slide  and 
have  a  squint  at  that  cave?'  An'  havin'  a  day 
off,  he  reckoned  he'd  enjy  the  trip.  So  here  we- 
all  are." 

"Yes — so  Ah  seel  Here  you-all  are.  And 
Ah  says  to  my  girls  and  the  posse,  says  Ah: 


24  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

'There'll  be  a  lot  of  fools  start  off  at  night-fall, 
to  hit  this  trail  to  the  Slide  just  out  of  dern- 
fool  curiosity  to  have  a  squint  at  Old  Montresor's 
Mine.  But  human  nature  is  human  nature,  girls, 
says  Ah,  so  when  they  get  that  squint,  they  may 
forget  one  of  the  Ten  Commandments  and  want 
to  covet  their  neighbor's  property.  And  seeing 
how  they  have  lost  a  good  night's  sleep  through 
climbing  the  Top  Notch  Trail  just  to  arrive  early 
to  have  that  squint,  they  will  sort  of  feel  justified 
in  stealing  an  acre,  or  so,  of  gold-land.  That 
would  make  them  break  another  Commandment; 
so  Ah  felt  it  a  duty,  Hank,  to  send  on  a  regiment 
in  advance,  to  save  the  souls  of  such  curious  sight- 
seers." Sam  Brewster  never  changed  a  muscle 
of  his  serious  face  nor  did  his  voice  have  the  slight- 
est sign  of  any  other  feeling  than  a  reverent  desire 
to  help  his  fellow-man.  But  the  two  men  knew 
Sam  Brewster  by  experience  as  well  as  from  hear- 
say. 

"Right-o!  Hank  told  me  what  a  good  man 
you  war,"  said  the  miner  who  accompanied  Hank. 
But  his  shifty  eyes  belied  the  tone. 

Mr.  Brewster  smiled.  "Yes.  Ah  did  hate  to 
see  any  one  lose  a  good  night's  sleep  and  then 
get  thus  far  only  to  be  mistaken  for  claim-jumpers 
by  the  Sheriff's  men  up  yonder.  Of  course,  Hank 


THE  CLAIM-JUMPERS  25 

and  you-all  aren't  going  to  take  such  chances  with 
the  law." 

The  miner  glanced  about  uneasily  but  only  saw 
two  girls  sitting  on  their  horses  a  short  distance 
away.  Hank's  face  lowered,  however,  and  he 
growled  forth :  "Ah  don't  see  whose  business  it  is 
whether  we  break  the  Sheriff's  law  or  not." 

"Perhaps  you  don't  see — but  Ah  do,  Hank. 
And  when  the  Sheriff  says,  'Keep  the  trail  free 
from  all  trespassers  till  my  posse  can  take  charge,' 
you  know  me — Ah'll  see  that  his  orders  are 
carried  out,"  returned  Mr.  Brewster  sternly,  his 
pockets  moving  suspiciously. 

"You-all  hain't  got  no  orders,  and  thar  hain't 
no  posse  up  yander,  neither,  'cause  they  hain't  a- 
comin'  till  after  Simms  leaves,"  exclaimed  Hank, 
unguardedly. 

"Ah !  So  you  and  your  man  thought  you'd  get 
a  lead  on  the  Sheriff,  eh?"  laughed  Mr.  Brewster. 
"Oh,  but  you  are  an  easy  tenderfoot  to  stuff, 
Hank!  Did  you-all  really  believe  such  a  story 
would  have  been  told  at  Oak  Creek  if  the  posse 
planned  to  wait  for  morning?  Why,  man,  that 
is  just  what  they  wanted  to  do — to  catch  a  lot 
of  rascals  red-handed  and  clean  Oak  Creek  out, 
once  for  all!  How  do  you  know  that  there  is 
a  real  claim  staked  out  up  there — or  whether  it 


/6  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

is  the  Sheriff's  joke  to  land  a  ring  of  crooks?" 

Eleanor  and  Barbara  were  so  interested  in  the 
way  Mr.  Brewster  handled  the  two  rascals  with- 
out telling  a  direct  falsehood  that  they  sighed 
when  the  claim-jumpers  backed  their  horses  and 
withdrew  to  confer  anxiously  on  what  they  had 
heard.  But  Sam  Brewster  interpolated  with: 

"If  it  is  curiosity  that  brought  you-all  to  lose 
a  night's  rest,  pass  right  along  and  tell  the  Sheriff 
and  Bill  your  yarn.  They  will  not  only  let  you 
take  a  squint  at  what  you  think  is  a  mine,  but 
they  will  pay  you  to  remain  and  help  arrest  all 
the  claim-jumpers  who  are  already  on  the  way." 

Even  as  he  spoke,  Mr.  Brewster  saw  the  sly 
move  of  Hank  as  he  tried  to  pull  his  gun  from 
the  holster;  instantly  a  hand  came  from  the 
rancher's  pocket  and  brought  to  light  a  cocked 
revolver.  The  other  man  suddenly  changed  his 
mind  when  the  bore  of  Brewster's  gun  was  leveled 
so  that  the  clerk  could  look  right  down  into  his 
grave  if  he  made  the  slightest  mistake  in  this  out- 
ing of  his. 

But  the  miner  became  ugly;  then  he  saw  the 
other  hand  of  Sam  Brewster  come  from  his  poc- 
ket and  he  knew  that  he  was  a  dead  rascal  too, 
if  he  made  one  false  step.  So  his  expression 
changed  to  a  wily  smile,  and  he  said: 


THE  CLAIMJUMPERS  27 

"What  you-all  ha'r  fur  ef  th'  Sheriff's  up  thar 
guardin'  th'  precious  mine?" 

"Told  to  warn  away  any  foolish  town-clerks 
who  might  be  heading  straight  to  Kingdom  Come  I 
You  know  Bill  likes  to  give  every  chump  a  loop- 
hole to  save  himself,  if  possible,"  retorted  Mr. 
Brewster. 

"We  ain't  lookin'  fer  no  argyment  with  Bill  ner 
the  Shuriff,  so  we-all'll  mosey  back  an'  tell  others 
we  meet.  Howsomever,  you-all  won't  find  it  so 
easy  to  git  rid  of  curious  folks  when  that  miner- 
gang  gits  ha'r.  Ah  happen  to  know  who  and 
how  many  are  plannin'  to  come." 

With  that  farewell,  Hank  turned  his  horse's 
head  and  led  the  way  down  the  trail,  slowly  fol- 
lowed by  the  unwilling  miner. 

"Oh,  Mr.  Brewster!  hadn't  we  better  ride 
after  Mike  and  the  girls  before  the  miners'  gang 
gets  here?"  cried  Barbara,  fearfully. 

Mr.  Brewster  laughed.  "That  was  only  a  bluff 
of  Hank's  to  make  me  ride  along  so  he  and  his 
pal  might  follow  us.  I  haven't  the  least  doubt 
but  that  both  of  those  cowardly  rascals  are  hiding 
just  out  of  sight  where  they  can  watch  my  every 
movement.  Should  we  start  to  ride  along  towards 
the  cave,  they  would  follow  and  shoot  us  from  the 
rear  as  sore  as  anything." 


28  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

In  spite  of  his  making  light  of  Hank,  however, 
Mr.  Brewster  kept  a  wary  eye  open  for  an  ambus-  - 
cade.     Nothing  of  moment  happened,  however, 
and  Jeb  was  just  saying:  "Maybe  we-all  had  best 
ride  for  the  cave,"  when  a  shot  rang  out. 

"Welll"  gasped  he,  while  the  two  girls  trem- 
bled with  fear. 

"That  sounded  from  Top  Notch.  It's  either 
Simms  and  his  party,  or  those  rascals.  In  either 
case,  it  won't  be  cowardly  in  us  to  hide  behind 
a  clump  of  pines  and  await  developments,"  sug- 
gested the  rancher. 

Mr.  Brewster  stationed  Eleanor  behind  a  close 
growth  of  young  pine  and  handed  her  a  small 
rifle.  Barbara  was  hidden  deeper  in  the  forest, 
and  then  he  and  Jeb  took  their  places  behind  a 
bowlder  whence  they  could  watch  the  up-trail. 
With  a  revolver  ready  in  each  hand,  they  waited 
anxiously. 

But  his  wise  precautions  were  unnecessary  this 
time,  for  Bill  soon  rode  up,  calling  loudly  as  he 
came.  Sam  Brewster  sighed  with  relief  to  find 
a  group  of  Oak  Creek's  leading  citizens  with 
the  Sheriff. 

"Bill,  did  you-all  shoot,  a  time  back?"  queried 
Mr.  Brewster  the  moment  the  posse  came  up. 

Bill  laughed.     "Ah'll  explain  in  a  minute.    You- 


THE  CLAIM-JUMPERS  29 

all  see  it  wa'r  this  way:  After  you-all  left  for 
home,  yesterday,  it  wa'r  found  how  some  low- 
down  sneaks  got  wind  of  this  claim  and  planned 
to  ride  up  at  once.  It  looked  a  lot  like  claim- 
jumpin',  so  we-all  got  together  mighty  quick  and 
rode  after  them  to  spare  the  Lord  any  trouble 
in  judgin'  'em.  Also,  we-all  reckoned  to  save  your 
party  any  nonsense  over  the  gold,  'specially  as 
thar  wa'r  four  gals  in  it." 

"But  three  rascals  got  a  lead  on  you,"  inter- 
rupted Sam. 

"Yeh,  three  are  at  large  somewhere,  Ah  reckon; 
but  two  of  the  worst  ones  out  of  that  five  are 
back  yonder.  Hank  Johnson  and  his  jail-bird 
pal  are  down  on  Four  Mile  Blaze.  When  we 
get  the  other  three,  we'll  rid  Oak  Crick  of  five  of 
its  worst^citizens." 

"Rattle-Snake  Mike  came  up  with  us,  Bill. 
We  rode  up  the  Indian  Trail — that's  how  we  got 
here  so  soon.  But  Mike  went  on  to  the  cave 
with  Polly  and  her  friend.  They'll  guard  their 
claim,  all  right,  unless  those  three  interfere,"  said 
Mr.  Brewster,  with  an  anxious  note  in  his 
voice. 

"Ah  reckon  we'd  better  make  for  that  cave, 
then!  Thar  may  be  some  work  cut  out  fer  us 
thar,"  whispered  Bill,  seeing  the  two  city  girls 


30  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

now  ride  out  from  cover  and  come  over  to  join 
the  group, 

"Where's  Mrs.  Brewster?"  asked  Eleanor, 
anxiously. 

"This  is  Bill's  party — they  left  Oak  Creek  last 
night,"  explained  Mr.  Brewster. 

"Then  where  is  Simms  and  your  wife?"  asked 
Barbara. 

"You  see  it  will  take  the  others  much  longer 
to  ride  up  from  Lone  Pine  than  it  took  us  to  climb 
the  trappers'  trail,  so  they  can't  possibly  arrive 
for  some  time  yet.  We-all  just  got  here,  and 
we  left  Oak  Creek  at  midnight,"  explained  one  of 
the  men,  encouraging  the  two  girls. 

"But  we-all  stopped  on  the  way  and  cooked 
breakfast  and  fed  our  hosses.  Simms  and  his 
party  will  ride  right  up  and  ought  to  be  ha'r  pritty 
soon,  now,"  said  Bill. 

"How  about  leavin'  some  one  here  at  Four  Mile 
Blaze  to  direct  the  Simms'  party,  while  we-all 
ride  on  with  Sam  to  hunt  those  three  claim-jump- 
ers," suggested  one  of  the  posse. 

"Barbara  and  I  will  wait  here  with  Jeb  if  you 
leave  us  each  with  a  gun,"  offered  Eleanor,  ea- 
gerly. 

Barbara  gasped  at  the  very  idea,  but  Eleanor 
added : 


THE  CLAIM-JUMPERS  31 

"We  don't  want  to  be  mixed  up  in  a  fight  with 
rascals,  and  we  are  safer  here  than  up  there." 

"The  gal's  right,  Sam.  They'd  onny  be  in  the 
road  if  we-all  have  to  chase  them  men,"  said  Bill. 

"But  they  can't  shoot!  Why  give  them  any 
guns?"  asked  Mr.  Brewster,  anxiously. 

"I  just  bet  I  could  kill  you  at  forty  paces,  if 
you  were  a  claim-jumper  and  looked  at  me  the 
way  Hank  looked  at  you !"  declared  Eleanor,  em- 
phatically. 

The  men  laughed,  and  Bill  wagged  his  head 
approvingly.  "Ah  say,  Sam,  let  the  gals  take  a 
crack  at  the  Four  Mile  tree — and  see." 

"Well,  even  the  sight  of  guns  will  make  the 
villains  respect  us,  even  if  we  can't  shoot!" 
added  Barbara,  who  felt  that  the  lesser  of  the 
two  dangers  would  be  to  remain  with  Eleanor  and 
Jeb  where  they  now  were. 

After  many  instructions  and  warnings  had  been 
given  to  Jeb  and  the  two  city  girls,  Mr.  Brewster 
spurred  his  horse  on  to  ride  after  his  companions 
who  were  already  up  the  trail.  But  he  had  not 
far  to  go. 

At  the  bend  of  the  trail,  where  there  was  a 
small  clearing,  he  saw  the  men  standing  up  in 
their  stirrups,  intent  on  something  ahead.  He 
urged  his  horse  up  to  join  them,  and  just  before 


32  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

reaching  the  group,  he  called  out:  "What's 
wrong?" 

The  horses  were  tossing  their  heads,  pawing  the 
ground,  and  acting  restive.  Bill  turned  half-way 
around  in  the  saddle  and  replied :  "D'you-all  smell 
anything,  Sam?" 

Mr.  Brewster  noticed  then,  that  the  men  held 
faces  up  and  were  sniffing  in  different  directions. 
He  then  sniffed  carefully  himself  and  exclaimed: 
"Smells  like  smoke." 

But  even  as  he  spoke,  the  thought  reached  him : 
"A  forest  fire!"  His  face  went  white  and  he 
murmured  a  prayer  to  himself  for  Polly  and  Anne. 

"Yeh,  Sam.  Comin'  down  from  the  Slide," 
was  all  Bill  said. 

"My  Gawd,  men!  what  shall  we  do?"  cried  one 
of  the  posse. 

"We-all  must  ship  them  two  gals  an'  Jeb  down 
trail,  right  away,  and  then  the  rest  of  us'll  ride  up 
to  see  if  anything  kin  be  done  to  stop  it.  Mebbe 
it  hain't  got  a  headway  yet,"  replied  Bill. 

But  the  two  girls  were  now  seen  riding  up  the 
trail  as  fast  as  their  horses  could  travel.  Bar- 
bara rode  first  and  Eleanor  after  her,  shouting 
aloud  in  a  frantic  voice.  The  men  waited  fear- 
fully to  hear  what  new  trouble  assailed  them. 

Barbara  almost  ran  down  Mr.  Brewster's  horse 


THE  CLAIM-JUMPERS  33 

in  her  blind  fear,  and  when  questioned,  could  not 
speak.  Eleanor  then  rode  up  and  looked  so  angry 
that  she  could  scarcely  explain. 

"Bob  declared  she  heard  noises  behind  us  and 
on  one  side,  and  then,  without  giving  me  or  Jeb 
any  warning,  she  started  her  horse  at  a  run,  to 
come  and  meet  you  men.  She  cried  that  it  would 
be  safer  with  a  crowd  than  alone  with  only  Jeb 
and  me  and  the  rifles  we  knew  nothing  about. 
I  had  to  ride  after  her  to  see  that  she  reached 
you  safely.  Now  I'll  go  back  and  keep  guard 
again." 

"Stop,  Nolla !  Although  you  are  a  brave  lit- 
tle girl,  it  will  be  of  no  use  to  keep  guard  now. 
Jeb  and  you  will  have  to  ride  down  Top  Notch 
Trail  as  fast  as  you  can,  and  meet  Simms  who  is 
coming  up  with  Mrs.  Brewster.  Send  Simms  and 
the  men  on  to  help  us,  but  you  three  women  take 
Jeb  and  go  right  on  down.  There's  a  forest  fire." 
Mr.  Brewster  added  the  last  portentous  words 
in  an  awed  voice. 

"Oh,  my  goodness!  Will  we  be  hurt?"  cried 
Barbara. 

But  Eleanor  thought  not  of  herself.  She  im- 
mediately cried:  "Are  Polly  and  Anne  safe?" 

"Polly — whar's  she?"  demanded  Bill,  suddenly 
realizing  that  the  girl  was  not  one  of  the  party. 


34  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

"She  went  to  the  cave  with  Mike  to  watch 
there,  in  case  any  claim-jumpers  tried  to  stake 
their  ground,"  groaned  Sam  Brewster. 

"Is  the  cave  far  from  here?"  added  Bill, 
quickly. 

"Not  as  far  as  Top  Notch  Trail,"  replied 
Eleanor,  seeing  a  possible  way  for  her  to  get 
to  Polly  and  Anne, 

"But  some  one  ought  to  send  Simms  on  to  us 
and  then  ride  on  down  trail  to  signal  the  forest- 
rangers'  look-out  so's  they  could  come  and  help 
fight  the  fire,"  said  another  man. 

"Can't  Bob  and  I  join  Polly  and  Anne  in  the 
cave  where  w€  will  be  safe  from  any  fire,  and  you 
send  Jeb  down  to  signal  Simms  and  the  forest- 
rangers?"  asked  Eleanor  excitedly,  seeing  how 
urgent  was  the  need  for  instant  action. 

"All  right;  take  this  young  man  for  protection, 
and  get  to  the  cave  as  quick  as  you  can.  You  gals 
wait  in  the  cave  till  you-all  hear  from  us  again. 
Send  Mike  down  trail  to  Jeb  to  hurry  Simms  and 
then  escort  Mrs.  Brewster  home.  We're  ridin' 
up  yander  to  work,"  ordered  Bill,  authoritatively. 

Eleanor  turned  her  horse's  head  to  a  faint  trail 
that  she  was  sure  would  bring  them  to  the  cave, 
and  the  cow-boy  followed,  while  Bill  and 


THE  CLAIM-JUMPERS  35 

his  men  urged  the  horses  to  their  utmost  up  the 
steep  Slide. 

"Thar's  one  good  thing  about  this  fire — it  seems 
to  be  comin'  down,  and  it  don't  travel  near  so 
quick  that  way,  like-as-how  it  do  when  it  goes 
upward.  Mebbe  we-all  kin  choke  it  in  its  first 
stages,"  explained  Bill. 

Eleanor  and  her  two  followers  now  reached  the 
end  of  the  little  erosion  made  by  a  storm.  Then 
the  city  girl  found  it  really  was  no  trail  at  all. 
They  sat  their  horses  looking  helplessly  about 
while  Barbara  began  to  whimper  with  fear. 

Even  courageous  Eleanor  began  to  quail  at 
what  would  befall  them  if  they  were  lost,  when 
Mike  suddenly  appeared  in  the  distance,  climbing 
the  steep  slope  before  them.  His  broncho  came 
on  recklessly  through  the  bushes  and  wild  under- 
growth until  he  was  within  speaking  distance  then 
he  shouted: 

"Mike  hear  shoots!  Gals  in  cabe  alle-right. 
Mike  smell  fire.  He  go  see  who  burn.  Fin' 
tree  bad  miner — One  gone  happy  hunting-groun', 
— two  sleep  f'm  much  fire-water.  Tree  hosses 
hobble  on  down  trail."  As  he  spoke  he  acted 
his  words  so  that  it  was  plain  that  he  had  found 
the  three  claim-jumpers  who  were  dead  drunk,  and 


36  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

their  mounts  which  were  trying  to  break  away 
in  sheer  fear  of  the  fire. 

"Mike,  Bill  and  Mr.  Brewster  said  you  were 
to  leave  us  in  the  cave,  if  it  is  safe  there,  and 
then  ride  down  trail  to  meet  Jeb  and  go  on  to 
stop  Simms'  party.  Warn  the  lookout  on  the 
forest-ranger's  post  and  then  come  back  to  us, 
but  Jeb  is  to  ride  home  with  the  Missus!"  ex- 
claimed Eleanor,  excitedly. 

Mike  frowned.     "Indian  no  like  squaw  job!" 

"That's  just  what  I  was  going  to  say,  Mike. 
Now  if  you  will  put  us  on  the  right  trail,  we 
three  can  find  the  way  to  the  cave.  We  will  stay 
there  with  the  other  girls,  and  let  you  do  as  you 
think  best,  after  you  send  Jeb  away  to  meet 
Simms,"  said  Eleanor. 

"Mike  mus'  tell  Boss  and  Bill  'bout  fire.  Him 
eat  down-hill,  udder  side  Slide.  No  burn  dis 
side." 

Meantime,  the  Indian  was  leading  the  way  to 
the  trail  that  would  bring  the  girls  out  .at  the 
ravine  where  the  cave  was.  Once  on  the  right 
trail,  the  youth  whom  Bill  had  sent  with  the  girls, 
said  he  could  keep  to  it  without  going  astray. 

Mike  waited  but  a  moment  to  assure  himself 
that  they  would  be  safe  along  the  trail,  then  he 
started  his  horse  up  the  steep  side.  His  keen 


THE  CLAIM-JUMPERS  37 

Indian  scout  habits  now  stood  him  in  good  stead. 
He  soon  had  the  Sheriff's  party  tracked  and  was 
riding  after  them.  His  young  broncho  galloped 
along  until  the  group  of  men  bound  for  the  Slide, 
were  hailed  by  a  war-whoop. 

Bill  turned  and  saw  the  Indian  close  behind. 
He  called  a  halt,  and  when  the  party  stopped, 
the  messenger  was  already  in  their  midst. 

"Fire  up  lodge-pole  pine  side.  Eatin'  down — 
dat  way!"  cried  Mike,  waving  a  hand  at  the  side 
of  the  mountain  away  from  them  and  the  cave. 

"Mike  go  see  an'  fin'  tree  miner.  Dey  hab 
big  fight — two  shoot  one.  Him  dead.  Udders 
drunk — gone  'sleep.  Hosses  tie  up." 

"Mike,  you  lead !  Men  fall  in — we-all  fight  the 
fire  first,  then  find  the  drunken  miners  and  arrest 
them  for  manslaughter,"  ordered  Bill,  and  thus 
the  posse  rode  away. 


CHAPTER  III 

AT  CHOKO'S  FIND 

AFTER  losing  the  trail  many  times  only  to  stum- 
ble into  it  again  and  again,  and  then  slipping, 
sliding,  or  jolting  down  the  steep  side  of  the  moun- 
tain where  the  timber-line  ended  near  the  cliff, 
Eleanor  finally  recognized  the  ravine  where  the 
cave  was  located. 

"Oh,  thank  heavens !  We're  almost  there,"  she 
cried,  trying  to  find  the  easiest  way  down  to  the 
ledge. 

Polly  and  Anne  were  sitting  before  the  en- 
trance to  the  cave,  when  they  heard  shouts  and 
saw  three  weary  riders  coming  along  the  rocky 
ledge  that  led  to  their  refuge. 

"Why — it's  Nolla  and  Bob  and  a  man!"  ex- 
claimed Polly,  jumping  up  to  run  and  meet  the 
girls. 

"What's  wrong — any  one  hurt?"  cried  Anne, 
the  moment  she  saw  the  faces  of  the  girls. 

Eleanor  then  told  about  the  forest-fire,  and 
38 


AT  CHORD'S  FIND  39 

where  the  men  were.  The  more  recent  excitement 
had  quite  driven  the  story  of  Hank  and  his  claim- 
jumpers  from  her  mind.  But  Polly  anxiously 
asked  for  her  mother. 

"Oh,  yes — Simms  and  the  party  hadn't  arrived 
when  we  left  Four  Mile  Blaze.  But  they  will 
be  all  right,  as  Mike  is  gone  to  meet  them.  Then 
your  mother  and  Jeb  will  ride  back  to  warn  the 
forest-rangers  about  the  fire,"  explained  Barbara. 

"Why,  no,  Bob.  Don't  you  remember,  Mike 
said  he  would  have  to  tell  Polly's  father  about  the 
drunken  men  and  the  fire,  first,"  Eleanor  corrected 
her  sister. 

"Well,  I'm  not  worrying  about  mother  because 
she  knows  too  much  to  run  into  unnecessary  dan- 
ger; but  father  always  wants  to  save  everybody 
and  everything  from  disaster,  and  so  takes  his 
life  in  his  hands,  over  and  over  again,"  Polly 
worried. 

"Mr.  Brewster'll  be  all  right  with  Bill  around, 
Miss  Polly,"  said  the  young  man  who  had  ac- 
companied the  city  girls.  "No  one  is  allowed  to 
run  any  risks  for  nuthin',  when  the  Sheriff  is  there 
to  stop  'em." 

"I  just  hope  Bill  will  keep  father  in  bounds!" 
declared  Polly. 

Very  little  smoke  reached  the  ravine,  which  was 


40  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

on  the  opposite  side  of  the  mountain  from  that 
where  the  fire  raged,  so  the  girls  knew  not  how 
matters  fared  until  late  in  the  afternoon.  Then, 
to  their  great  relief,  Mr.  Brewster  shouted  a 
signal  from  the  lodge-pole  pine  forest. 

Polly  gave  an  answering  call,  and  then  ran 
along  the  dangerous  ledge  until  she  reached  the 
place  where  the  pine  trees  had  been  blown  down 
the  day  of  the  blizzard.  Here  she  could  see  the 
dim  outlines  of  several  riders  as  they  waited  for 
some  evidence  that  they  were  on  the  right 
trail. 

Before  Polly  could  climb  the  slope  to  wave  her 
hat,  she  saw  Mike  riding  up  behind  the  party  and 
then  go  on  before  them  down  the  trail  leading  to 
the  cave. 

Polly  was  kept  busy  with  answering  the  girls 
who  stood  at  the  cave  entrance,  and  in  calling  to 
her  parents  and  friends  who  were  approaching  as 
fast  as  the  down-trail  would  permit.  When  they 
rode  near  enough  for  Polly  to  see  their  faces,  she 
recognized  her  mother  and  Jeb  in  the  party;  she 
thought  they  expressed  great  concern  over  some- 
thing that  must  have  happened  to  the  party — or 
perhaps  something  that  might  happen. 

"Well,  Polly,  you've  had  all  day  to  dig  the  gold 


AT  CHORD'S  FIND  41] 

out  of  your  mine;  got  it  tied  in  bags  for  us  to 
lug  home?"  called  Mr.  Simms,  jocularly. 

"Mr.  Simms,  you  needn't  worry  over  that  gold 
as  long  as  there  is  something  worse  to  trouble 
you.  What  is  it?"  answered  Polly. 

"Ha,  ha,  ha!  Poll  must  be  feeling  lonesome; 
when  she  talks  like  this,  it's  a  sure  sign  she  needs 
jolly  company,"  replied  the  lawyer. 

"Maybe  she  thought  we  were  chewed  up  by 
the  grizzlies,"  added  Mr.  Brewster,  forcing  a 
gayety  similar  to  that  of  Mr.  Simms. 

"What's  the  matter  with  you  men?  Is  there 
any  danger  from  the  fire?"  demanded  Polly. 

"No,  the  fire's  burning  over  the  down-slope  on 
the  other  side.  You  know  it  won't  come  this 
way,"  returned  Mrs.  Brewster. 

"Well,  then — where  are  the  other  men?  Did 
those  drunken  miners  shoot  any  one?"  persisted 
the  girl. 

"Don't  bother  with  questions,  Polly.  Let  us 
get  some  supper  before  we  think  of  anything  else," 
advised  her  mother. 

Mike  was  soon  busy  unpacking  the  outfit  for 
cooking,  and  Mrs.  Brewster  joined  him  to  give 
any  assistance  he  might  need.  Polly  went  over  to 
her  father  to  try  and  get  more  satisfactory  in- 


42  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

formation  from  him,  regarding  that  day's  experi- 
ences. 

"Did  you  say  the  miners  who  came  up  anead  of 
us  to-day  were  in  Bill's  custody,  Daddy?" 

"Ah  didn't  say  anything;  but  now  Ah'll  tell  you- 
all  that  they  are  shipped  safely  to  a  place  where 
they  can  do  no  harm." 

"Oh !  Did  Bill  go  down  the  Trail  with  them?" 
continued  Polly. 

"No,  Bill's  man  went  down-trail  to  watch  in 
case  of  any  new  trouble." 

"See  here,  father!  Out  with  your  secret! 
What  are  you-all  keeping  from  me?"  asked  Polly, 
anxiously. 

"Good  gracious,  Poll!  Can't  a  man  feel  riled 
after  such  a  wearing  day  and  with  nothing  to 
eat,  without  his  womenfolks  asking  plaguey  ques- 
tions?" cried  Mr.  Brewster,  testily. 

Polly  was  silenced  for  the  moment,  but  she 
went  out  to  the  ledge  where  her  mother  was 
helping  Mike,  and  there  she  began  again. 

"Mother,  I  know  something  unusual  concerns 
you-all,  so  you  may  as  well  confide  in  me." 

"I  reckon  the  men  are  vexed  because  we  lost 
all  this  day  hunting  up  those  wretched  miners  who 
must  have  accidentally  set  the  fire  going  on  the 
other  side,"  was  all  the  reply  Polly  received. 


AT  CHOKO'S  FIND  43 

Mike  glanced  up  to  look  covertly  at  Mrs.  Brew- 
ster  and  the  inquisitive  girl  caught  his  expression. 

"Even  Mike  is  laughing  at  the  poor  way  in 
which  you  are  fencing  with  me.  Now  treat  me 
as  if  I  were  sensible — not  like  a  baby,  or  like 
Bob!"  demanded  Polly. 

"Well,  to  tell  the  truth,  Polly,  I'm  afraid  to  tell 
you  everything.  If  those  girls  know  they  will 
go  clean  daffy,"  sighed  Mrs.  Brewster,  passing 
her  hand  over  a  troubled  brow. 

"Mother!  Did  I  go  daffy  when  that  blizzard 
carried  Choko  over  the  ledge — and  what  did  I 
do  up  on  Grizzly  when  the  snow  and  ice  covered 
the  trail?  Did  I  lose  my  nerve?" 

At  that  moment  Mr.  Simms  called  out  to  Mike : 
"  'Most  done  cookin',  Mike?  Ah  want  you-all  to 
go  with  me  to  ketch  a  grizzly  afore  it  is  too  dark 
to  see  him.  Ah  promised  mah  wife  she  should 
have  a  bear-skin  rug  this  trip." 

Mike  looked  at  Mrs.  Brewster  who  nodded  for 
him  to  go.  She  calmly  took  the  ladle  and  con- 
tinued stirring  the  soup  that  the  Indian  had  been 
attending  to,  then  Mike  hurried  after  Simms. 

"There  now — I  know  it  is  something  serious 
and  it  is  much  better  for  me  to  know  what  may 
happen  than  to  have  it  come  upon  me  like  a  thun- 
der-bolt," said  Polly. 


44  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

"Well,  then,  keep  on  stirring  this  broth  while 
I  busy  myself  over  the  rest  of  the  supper,  and 
I'll  tell  you.  Don't  exclaim,  or  show  any  shock. 
It  is  important  for  us  to  keep  cool,"  advised  Mrs. 
Brewster,  as  she  toasted  some  dry  bread  over  the 
embers. 

"I  wasn't  present  when  this  occurred  but  father 
told  me.  The  men  found  the  miner  who  had 
been  shot,  and  down  the  slope  further  on,  they 
saw  the  forms  of  the  other  two.  But  the  panic- 
stricken  horses  that  had  been  hobbled  and  left  to 
graze,  were  so  frightened  at  the  clouds  of  smoke 
and  crackling  fire,  that  a  few  of  the  men  had  to 
lead  them  back  to  a  clear  place.  There  they  were 
tied  securely  to  some  trees. 

"Your  father,  Bill,  and  one  of  his  men,  jumped 
down  the  steep  sides  where  the  fire  was  raging, 
and  began  to  beat  out  the  flames.  They  could 
see  the  two  drunken  miners  just  beyond  the  fire- 
line  down  the  trail,  but  they  seemed  so  overcome 
with  whisky  and  smoke  that  they  failed  to  re- 
spond to  any  shouts  from  the  men,  or  to  the  fear 
of  the  on-driving  fire. 

"Our  men  had  beaten  out  the  ground-fire  half- 
way to  the  miners,  when  a  terrific  rumbling 
sounded,  as  from  a  distance  behind  them.  BilFs 
man  was  far  in  advance  of  the  other  two  rescuers, 


AT  CHOKO'S  FIND  45 

and  perhaps,  the  crackling  on  the  ground  and 
the  raging  fire  in  the  trees  overhead,  deafened 
him  to  this  other  portentous  sound. 

"Father,  however,  felt  that  it  meant  something 
more  terrible  than  a  fire,  so  he  shouted  to  Bill 
and  tried  to  warn  the  man.  But  a  fit  of  cough- 
ing from  inhaling  the  smoke,  cut  his  call  short. 
Bill  then  cried,  'Go  on  back,  Sam — I'll  get  my 
man!' 

"So  your  father  managed  to  force  his  way  back 
towards  the  Top  Trail.  There  he  saw  a  great 
white  cloud  swooping  down  from  the  peak  of 
Grizzly  Slide.  He  turned,  screamed  at  Bill  and 
waved  his  arms  to  warn  them  out  of  the  track  of 
the  avalanche,  if  possible.  Bill  and  his  man  saw 
this  new  danger  and  turned  to  climb  back  to  safety. 

"Father  was  leading,  Bill  a  short  distance  "be- 
hind him,  and  the  man  not  far  in  the  rear,  when 
the  first  two  heard  a  scream.  They  turned  and 
saw  the  horse  had  stumbled  and  fallen.  He 
tried  to  scramble  to  his  feet  before  the  onrush  of 
the  half-frozen  earth  and  rock  and  snow  could 
reach  him,  but  it  caught  and  whirled  him  away  on 
its  crest. 

"Father  and  Bill  were  thrown  down  with  the 
shaking  of  the  ground  caused  by  the  terrific  slide, 
and  several  times  they  were  almost  sucked  into 


46  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

the  vortex  caused  by  the  overwhelming  ever-grow- 
ing stream.  Had  it  not  been  for  Mike  who  had 
heard  the  rumble  and  knew  what  it  meant,  both 
Bill  and  father  would  have  been  lost.  But  Mike 
threw  out  a  rope  that  father  caught  and  quickly 
wound  about  himself,  while  Bill  clutched  on  to 
father's  legs.  Thus  Mike  dragged  them  up  to 
the  tree  where  he  had  bound  himself.  The  horses 
are  gone!" 

Mrs.  Brewster  seemed  overcome  at  the  recital 
of  the  awful  ordeal  the  men  had  passed  through, 
but  Polly  said  encouragingly : 

"Don't  take  on  so,  mother!  'All's  well  that 
«nds  well'  and  father  and  Bill  are  safe,  you 
know." 

"Oh,  but  this  isn't  all,  Polly !  Mike  says  when 
Grizzly  starts  an  avalanche  like  that  first  one, 
the  very  force  of  its  tearing  away  keeps  on  break- 
ing away  the  ice-fields  all  around  the  peak.  An- 
other slide  may  come  at  any  moment  and  pour 
down  this  side,  you  see.  The  men  who  had  taken 
care  of  the  horses  when  the  others  were  fight- 
ing the  fire  were  left  stationed  at  the  timber-line 
to  watch.  If  they  notice  the  faintest  sign  of  an- 
other serious  break  on  the  peak,  they  are  to  signal 
a  look-out  left  on  the  crest  of  this  slope.  And 
they  in  turn  must  warn  Bill's  son  who  was  left 


AT  CHOKO'S  FIND  47 

sitting  on  top  of  this  ledge.  That  is  where  Simms 
and  Mike  hare  gone  now.  There  must  have  beem 
a  signal  from  Bill's  boy  to  Simms." 

Mrs.  Brewster  looked  at  her  daughter  to  see 
if  she  could  bear  the  rest  of  the  story.  Find- 
ing Polly  as  calm  as  she  herself  was,  she  continued : 

"Father  said  the  experience  Simms  and  he  went 
through  was  mere  child's  play  to  what  it  might 
be  should  Grizzly  loosen  up  and  send  down  a  slide 
on  this  side  of  the  peak.  Of  course,  the  fire  and 
smoke  added  to  the  horror  on  the  other  side,  but 
the  actual  avalanche  was  not  as  tremendous  be- 
cause the  slope  was  partly  protected  by  the  abrupt 
drop  of  thousands  of  feet  from  the  peak  to  the 
valley,  down  which  the  greater  flood  must  have 
rushed. 

"This  side  is  on  the  direct  down-slope  from 
the  peak,  with  nothing  to  break  a  snow-slide,  or 
to  carry  off  the  bulk  of  the  debris. 

"This  morning,  when  I  rode  up  with  Simms' 
party,  we  met  two  old  trappers  who  were  coming 
down.  They  had  passed  Old  Grizzly  Slide  yes- 
terday, and  they  said  there  must  have  been  an 
awful  thaw  going  on  under  the  surface-ice  of  the 
Slide,  as  the  yawning  chasm  where  you  discovered 
the  crevice  the  other  day  was  frightful.  It  made 
even  their  courageous  spirits  tremble  at  sight  of 


48  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

it  But  they  turned  again  and  rode  up  with  us,  as 
they  said  they  could  be  useful  to  Bill.  They  are 
up  on  Top  Notch  now,  scouting  for  the  first  symp- 
toms of  a  slide." 

Polly  turned  white  as  she  heard  the  story,  but 
she  still  had  control  of  her  voice,  so  she  whis- 
pered: "Why  don't  we-all  start  down-trail  to- 
night? Why  lose  time  cooking  supper,  and  have 
the  men  up  there  watching  for  the  trouble  ?" 

"Mike  says  we  are  safer  in  this  cave  than  on 
the  trail.  It  is  impossible  to  go  down  the  Indian 
trail  at  night,  and  Top  Notch  Trail  is  bad  enough 
in  the  daytime,  so  that  in  the  dark  it  is  forbidding. 
He  says  this  cave  is  high  enough  up  on  the  ledge 
and  near  enough  to  the  crest  to  escape  most  of 
the  drift.  The  trash  will  be  swept  clear  over 
the  entrance  and  down  into  the  ravine,  while  any 
snow  or  ice  that  might  lodge  up  on  the  ledge  be- 
fore the  cave  will  soon  melt  again.  Then  we 
can  get  away,  when  all  is  over." 

Polly  said  nothing,  but  she  was  thinking  seri- 
ously. Mrs.  Brewster  was  grateful  that  her 
daughter  could  bear  such  awesome  news  without 
a  tremor.  So  the  two  completed  the  supper,  and 
were  ready  to  serve  it,  when  Sam  Brewster  rode 
down  the  ledge. 

"Come  on,  Daddy!     Just  in  time  for  a  bowl 


AT  CHOKO'S  FIND  4$ 

of  hot  soup  I"  called  Polly,  gayly  waving  a  ladle. 

Her  mother  admired  the  self-control  the  girl 
showed  over  any  fear  or  danger,  and  followed  the 
brave  example  set  her.  "Yes,  Sam,  if  Simms 
wants  to  chase  a  bear  in  the  twilight,  let  him! 
You  will  do  far  better  to  enjoy  the  supper." 

So  they  sat  down  to  eat  toasted  bread  and  soup, 
while  Polly  talked  vivaciously  and  caused  many  a 
laugh  from  the  unsuspecting  girls.  As  the  meager 
supper  was  almost  finished,  however,  Mr.  Brew- 
ster  mentioned  in  a  casual  tone:  "Girls,  Ah  ex- 
pect John  and  his  friends  early  to-morrow,  you 
know.  Mike  is  going  down  to  meet  them." 

"Oh,  yes!  And  won't  we  have  exciting  adven- 
tures to  tell  him!"  exclaimed  Anne,  thinking  only 
of  John  and  his  coming. 

"Mrs.  Brewster  is  going  down  with  Mike,  to 
meet  the  boys.  So  we-all  thought  you  gals  would 
like  to  ride  down,  too,  instead  of  sitting  up  in 
front  of  this  cave  all  day  and  night,"  continued 
Mr.  Brewster. 

"Why,  how  foolish!  to  kill  the  horses  with 
all  that  climbing!  Up  to-day,  down  to-morrow, 
and  up  again  the  next  day  I  No  horse  could 
stand  that!"  declared  Anne,  amazed  at  her  host's 
suggestion. 

"Well,  Ah've  been  thinking  you-afl  had  best 


50  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

stay  down,  once  you  get  there.  This  is  no  sort 
of  life  for  women-folk,  anyway.  When  John 
and  Tom  Latimer  get  here  they  can  look  after 
your  mining  interests  better  than  you  can  your- 
selves." 

"But,  Mr.  Brewster,  you  haven't  even  seen  the 
hole  inside  of  that  cave,  where  I  followed  after 
Polly  the  day  we  discovered  the  gold!"  exclaimed 
Eleanor,  greatly  disappointed  in  Polly's  father. 

"Ah  haven't  had  time,  Nolla.  What  with  the 
doings  of  the  claim-jumpers  and  everything, 
Ah've  had  a  full  day.  Besides,  it  looks  as  if 
we-all  are  going  to  have  some  time  up  here,  and 
Ah'd  feel  a  heap  easier  if  you  women  were  safe 
at  home."  x 

"Are  there  signs  of  other  claim-jumpers  com- 
ing up,  Mr.  Brewster?"  asked  Eleanor,  anxiously. 

"From  what  our  scouts  report,  up  on  the  Trail, 
we're  going  to  have  such  a  time,  if  we  remain 
here,  that  we  may  not  have  another  good  oppor- 
tunity to  escape  with  our  lives,"  returned  the  dis- 
tracted man. 

"Oh  dear  me!  Can't  we  start  now?  I  never 
want  to  see  any  claim-jumpers  again!"  cried  Bar- 
bara, wringing  her  hands. 

"Keep   quiet,    Bob!     We'll   do   just   as    Mr. 


AT  CHOKO'S  FIND  51] 

Brewster  says,  but  your  whimpering  won't  help 
any,"  said  Anne. 

"Well,  girls,  I'm  so  eager  to  see  John  again, 
that  I'm  willing  to  ride  down  with  Mike  and 
mother,"  said  Polly,  acting  her  part  perfectly. 

"Oh,  Polly!  I  don't  want  to  go  and  leave  the 
gold  mine,  but  I  want  you  to  stay  with  me,"  cried 
Eleanor. 

"Goodness  me,  Nolla !  Don't  you  s'pose  we 
can  ride  up  again  when  the  danger  blows  over? 
A  lot  of  good  the  mine  would  do  either  one  of 
us  if  a  dozen  daim-jumpers  put  lead  through  us 
all  at  one  time  I"  laughed  Polly,  but  feeling  far 
from  humorous. 

"I  suppose  I'll  just  have  to  go,  if  all  the  rest 
of  you  do!"  cried  Eleanor,  stamping  her  foot 
angrily. 

So,  after  much  arguing  and  explaining,  it  was 
decided  that  every  one  should  be  ready  to  start 
down-trail  at  the  earliest  streak  of  daylight. 

That  night  the  girls  and  Mrs.  Brewster  slept 
on  the  pine-beds — or  at  least  the  city  girls  slept, 
while  Polly  and  her  mother  rested  even'  as  they 
waited  for  the  first  warning  call  from  the  guard, 
who  sat  by  the  fire  that  was  started  to  keep  away 
the  wild  beasts. 


52  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

The  hours  passed  without  any  new  signals,  and 
at  three  o'clock  Mike  called  out  that  he  was  ready 
to  start.  The  girls  demurred  about  getting  up  at 
that  hour,  but  Polly  was  too  energetic  to  give 
them  any  peace.  So,  shortly  after  three,  the  en- 
tire party  started  down  Indian  Trail,  traveling  as 
swiftly  as  possible. 

"Now  see  here!  why  do  all  you  men  come 
down,  too?  I  thought  it  was  only  the  women- 
folk who  had  to  get  out  of  the  way!"  exclaimed 
Eleanor,  wonderingly. 

"If,  any  claim-jumpers  are  about  to  stake  out 
our  land  up  there  who  is  there  left  to  stop  them?" 
added  Anne,  suspiciously,  when  she  saw  the  deep 
concern  on  every  man's  face  as  he  rode  single 
file  down  the  path. 

"Wall,  now,  seein*  as  we-all  are  well  along  the 
way  down,  Ah  may  as  well  tell  you-all :  thar  hain't 
goin'  to  be  no  danger  of  any  claim-jumpers  stak- 
ing your  land  if  Old  Grizzly  knows  anything 
about  it.  Thar  war  a  tumble  avalanche  yester- 
day and  a  leetle  one  at  suppertime;  it  looks  like- 
es-how  anuther  powerful  one  will  hit  the  trail  any 
moment.  That's  why  we-all  air  runnin'  away  as 
fast  as  our  hosses  kin  go,"  explained  Bill. 

"Oh!     Tell  Mike  to  hurry!"  cried  Barbara. 

"No  fear  but  what  we-all  are  as  crazy  to  git 


AT  CHOKO'S  FIND  53 

down  as  you  kin  be,  young  leddy,"  said  Bill, 
soothingly. 

After  four  hours'  hard  traveling,  the  riders 
came  to  a  small  park  where  Mike  said  they  could 
rest  and  cook  their  breakfast,  and  feed  the  horses. 
From  a  certain  spot  on  the  clearing  on  this  moun- 
tainside, the  peak  of  Old  Grizzly  Slide  could  be 
seen  opposite  them,  dazzling  in  the  sunshine. 

"Well,  the  old  rascal  is  still  up  there,"  declared 
Anne. 

"But  you-all  can't  say  how  soon  its  skirts  will 
whisk  and  send  down  the  trash  that  always  ruins 
a  forest,"  added  Bill. 

Even  as  he  spoke,  a  strange  sight  was  pre- 
sented to  the  group  who  were  admiring  the 
sparkling  peak.  A  great  mist  seemed  to  rise  sud- 
denly from  its  pinnacle,  spreading  out  and  obscur- 
ing the  sun  for  a  time.  Then  an  ominous  rum- 
ble echoed  along  the  crest,  and  rolled  down  the 
slopes.  The  mist  was  suddenly  sucked  down  by 
some  tremendous  force,  and  then  a  mighty  tremor 
shook  the  ground  where  the  escaped  riders  stood. 

The  horses  seemed  to  know  instinctively  that 
there  was  some  upheaval  of  nature  taking  place, 
for  they  quivered  along  their  sensitive  nerves  and 
nosed  the  air  questioningly.  Several  of  the  high- 
bred animals  pulled  at  their  halters  and,  with 


54  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

drawn-back  lips,  snapped  viciously  at  the  air  as  if 
to  warn  away  the  destruction. 

"Oh,  oh!     Will  it  hit  us?"  wailed  Barbara. 

"No,  we  are  safe  on  this  opposite  up-trail  now. 
But  a  few  hours  delay  in  getting  away  this  morn- 
ing and  we  would  have  been  caught  in  the  drift," 
said  Sam  Brewster,  wiping  beads  of  cold  perspira- 
tion from  his  brow. 

"Daddy,  you  don't  think  that  avalanche  was 
on  the  side  of  our  gold  mine,  do  you?"  asked 
Polly,  plaintively. 

"Pretty  close  to  Choko's  Find,  Polly  dear," 
said  her  father. 

"Humph!  Gol'  all  gone  dis  time!"  added 
Mike,  dramatically. 

"Oh  no!  don't  say  that,  Mike!"  wailed  Polly. 

"Not  our  gold  mine!"  added  Eleanor,  with 
gasping  breath. 

"Mebbe  no !     Mike  t'ink  yes." 

There  fell  a  silence  at  that,  and  each  one 
looked  at  the  other,  while  the  same  thought  passed 
through  their  minds:  "If  that  slide  buried 
Choko's  Find  again,  where  would  they  all  have 
been  had  they  remained  in  the  cave?" 


CHAPTER  IV 

JOHN  AND  HIS  FRIEND  ARRIVE 

NOTHING  could  have  been  done  to  avert  the 
catastrophe  on  Grizzly  Slide,  so  the  adventurers 
finished  their  breakfast  in  silence.  Mrs.  Brew- 
ster  seemed  the  only  one  who  appeared  grateful 
for  their  safety.  Doubtless,  the  others  felt  a 
certain  sense  of  thanks  but  they  were  so  disturbed 
over  the  evident  loss  of  the  mine  again,  that  it 
was  paramount  with  them. 

Having  packed  the  camp  dishes,  Mike  started 
on  the  trail  again,  silently  followed  by  the  rest. 
Not  until  they  reached  Bear  Forks  where  the 
roads  separated,  was  anything  more  said  about 
the  mine. 

"Jeb  can  accompany  the  ladies  to  Pebbly  Pit, 
while  Ah  ride  on  to  Oak  Creek  to  meet  the  train 
that  will  bring  John  and  his  friends.  It  doesn't 
look  as  if  we-all  can  use  their  knowledge  now, 
but  we  may  as  well  talk  things  over  seeing  that 
like-as-how  they  will  have  had  the  long  trip  here," 
ventured  Mr.  Brewster,  thoughtfully. 

55 


56 

"We-all  ought  to  make  up  a  crowd  to  go  up 
and  try  to  find  Haywuth's  body.  Mebbe  it  will 
show  when  the  snow's  melted  from  the  slope," 
added  Bill. 

"Sam,  why  don't  you-all  plan  while  on  your 
ride  to  Oak  Creek,  to  take  Top  Notch  Trail  the 
same  time  John  and  Tom  take  the  expert  up? 
The  larger  the  party  the  less  danger  of  accident, 
you  know,"  suggested  Mrs.  Brewster. 

"Are  we  going  with  them,  mother?"  Polly  said, 
in  a  pleading  tone. 

"No,  indeed,  child!  Aren't  you  cured  with 
what  happened  this  time?" 

"  'Lightning  never  strikes  in  the  same  place 
twice,'  Mrs.  Brewster,"  said  Eleanor,  hopefully. 

"And  you  know,  Maw,  such  a  terrible  slide  has 
not  occurred  hereabouts  in  twenty  years,"  quickly 
added  Polly,  dropping  back  into  her  ranch  ver- 
nacular in  her  anxiety.  "It  may  be  another 
twenty  years  before  such  another  slide  happens." 

"And  we  can  get  all  the  gold  out  of  the  cave 
that  we  need  in  a  short  time,"  Barbara  reminded 
them. 

This  made  the  men  laugh,  as  the  girl's  words 
showed  how  little  she  really  understood  the  sit- 
uation up  on  the  peak. 

"Well,  we  can  talk  things  over  better  when  the 


JOHN  AND  HIS  FRIEND  ARRIVE     57 

boys  are  present  to  advise  us.  Meantime,  you- 
ail  ride  home  and  rest  up.  Ah'll  bring  the  boys 
along  about  night-fall,"  said  Mr.  Brewster. 

The  inhabitants  of  Oak  Creek  had  felt  the 
trembling  of  the  ground  caused  by  the  huge  land- 
slide on  Grizzly,  and  knowing  that  so  many  of 
their  prominent  citizens  were  there  at  the  time, 
they  were  grouped  about  the  public  house  anx- 
iously talking  over  the  chances  for  escape  that 
might  be  had  on  the  mountain-top. 

At  first  sight  of  the  returned  men,  a  wild  wel- 
come rang  out,  not  only  from  the  families  who 
feared  their  men-folks  might  never  return,  but 
also  from  the  citizens  who  were  genuinely  glad 
to  see  Bill  and  his  posse,  and  Simms  and  his  boy, 
safely  back. 

After  having  had  his  hand  shaken  as  if  it  were 
a  pump-handle,  Sam  Brewster  continued  on  to  the 
station  to  await  the  train  from  Denver.  As  he 
sat  on  the  edge  of  the  horse-trough  thinking  over 
the  recent  thrilling  experiences,  he  suddenly  re- 
alized that  if  Polly  had  lost  her  mine  again,  she 
might  also  lose  her  desire  to  go  away  to  school 
in  the  Fall.  This  seemed  a  happy  thought,  for 
he  sat  beaming  at  the  old  box-car  until  the  whistle 
announced  the  over-due  local. 

Two  handsome  young  men  jumped  from  the 


58  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

rear  platform  the  moment  the  train  slowed  down, 
and  soon  Mr.  Brewster  had  one  of  them  by  both 
hands  giving  him  a  hearty  welcome. 

"Now,  Dad,  try  your  muscle  on  Tom's  arm. 
Mine  has  had  enough  for  one  day,"  laughed  John, 
placing  an  arm  affectionately  over  his  father's 
shoulder. 

With  a  young  man  on  either  side  explaining 
why  the  expert  was  not  with  them,  Sam  Brewster 
walked  down  the  street  towards  Simms'  office. 
Both  young  men  were  eagerly  talking  so  the  older 
man  had  not  told  them  about  the  avalanche. 

"I  was  saying  to  John,  what  a  different  town 
this  will  be  the  moment  we  begin  operations  on 
Polly's  claim,"  said  Tom  Latimer. 

"As  the  train  pulled  in  I  tried  to  look  at  the 
station  and  streets  through  future  glasses — seeing 
the  rows  of  fine  store-buildings  and  the  thrift  that 
always  follows  on  the  heels  of  a  rich  find,"  added 
John. 

"We'll  drop  in  Simms'  office,  boys,  as  I  have  to 
borrow  his  horses.  I  came  on  to  meet  you  with- 
out bringing  any  mounts,"  said  Mr.  Brewster. 

Both  young  men  laughed  heartily  at  this  admis- 
sion, and  Tom  said  teasingly:  "I  suppose  you 
were  so  excited  over  Polly's  discovery  of  gold 
that  you  dean  forgot  we  were  city  chaps  who 


JOHN  AND  HIS  FRIEND  ARRIVE     5$ 

are  not  overfond  of  hiking  over  these  trails." 

Simms  was  talking  to  the  coroner  about  the  wit- 
nesses to  the  death  of  Bill's  man,  and  the  newly 
arrived  young  engineers  heard  him  say:  "Sam 
Brewster  was  the  other  one  who  escaped  that 
death." 

"What's  he  talking  about,  Dad?"  whispered 
John,  anxiously,  as  he  watched  the  officer  take 
notes. 

Then  in  as  few  words  as  possible,  the  boys  were 
told  all  about  the  land-slide  on  Grizzly  that  had, 
most  likely,  buried  Choko's  Find  under  tons  and 
tons  of  debris — maybe,  hid  it  completely  again 
for  all  time. 

They  sat  in  Simms'  office  talking  over  the  plans 
for  the  morrow  when  a  large  party  was  to  go  up 
Top  Notch.  As  they  sat  arranging  who  would 
be  the  best  men  to  take,  John  interrupted  the  con- 
versation : 

"Isn't  that  Jeb  riding  along  the  road  with  two 
led  horses?" 

"Sure  enough!  Your  mother  must  have  re- 
membered I  had  but  one  mount,  and  so  Jeb  was 
hurried  here  with  extra  horses  for  you,"  replied 
Mr.  Brewster,  running  to  the  door  and  hailing  his 
man. 

On  the  way  to  Pebbly  Pit,  Tom  rode  along- 


60  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

side  Mr.  Brewster  while  John  rode  beside  Jeb. 
The  two  latter  riders  had  much  to  say  to  each 
other,  for  John  had  been  Jeb's  particular  charge 
when  the  hired  man  first  went  to  work  at  Pebbly 
Pit.  Now  John  was  a  head  taller  than  his  erst- 
while guardian,  even  if  he  was  much  the  younger. 

Jeb  acted  very  morose  and  absentminded ;  in- 
stead of  giving  sensible  replies  to  John's  ques- 
tions about  the  avalanche,  he  would  mutter  and 
say  inconsequent  things.  Finally  John  said : 

"Well,  it  must  have  been  a  narrow  escape,  any- 
way." 

"That's  just  it,  John.  Ef  Ah  don't  run  away 
from  Pebbly  Pit  she'll  git  me!"  returned  Jeb, 
greatly  troubled. 

"I'm  talking  about  that  land-slide — what  do 
you  mean?"  laughed  John,  beginning  to  under- 
stand that  Jeb  was  worried  over  something  other 
than  the  Grizzly  experience. 

"Wh — y — Ah'm  meanin'  that  widder!  It's 
leap-year,  you  know." 

John  had  never  heard  about  Sary,  so  he  was 
unprepared  to  offer  any  advice,  but  he  thought 
best  to  agree  in  everything  with  Jeb,  concerning 
this  particular  one,  and  all  "widders"  in  general. 

uYe-es — siree !  That  Sary  kin  ketch  any  man 
she  starts  out  to  trap.  Ef  she  laid  eyes  on 


JOHN  AND  HIS  FRIEND  ARRIVE     61 

enny  of  them  farm-hands  at  Pebbly  Pit,  like-as- 
how  she  has  on  me,  they'd  roll  right  over  and 
eat  from  her  han's.  But,  you  see,  John,  Ah  ain't 
a  marryin'  man,  so  Ah  wants  to  escape." 

ujeb,  I  have  a  plan!  Suppose  we  get  Tom  to 
flirt  with  Sary  and  then  let  her  understand  she  is 
fickle,  so  that  you  won't  consider  her  for  a  mate," 
whispered  John,  thinking  of  the  fun  he  could 
have  by  playing  this  joke  on  his  friend. 

Jeb  gave  John  a  scornful  look  that  meant  vol- 
umes. "D'ye  think  Sary  would  fall  fer  it?  Ah 
tells  you-all  she  ain't  no  fule.  She  kin  see  straight, 
an'  she  knows  Tom  Latimer  ain't  in  her 
class." 

Thus  trying  to  plan  for  Jeb's  peace  and  hap- 
piness, the  two  found  they  had  reached  the  Rain- 
bow Cliffs.  Tom  and  Mr.  Brewster  were  look- 
ing over  the  beautiful  shining  walls,  and  Tom 
sighed: 

"You  wouldn't  have  to  waste  one  regret  on 
Polly's  loss  of  the  gold  mine,  if  you  would  but 
consent  to  let  us  sell  a  bit  of  these  walls." 

"Ah'm  not  worryin'  over  her  loss  of  gold, 
Tom ;  it's  glad  Ah  am  that  it  turned  out  so.  Now 
she  won't  coax  to  go  away  to  some  big  school 
where  Ah  can't  see  her  for  six  months." 

Tom  Latimer  turned  about  in  the  saddle  and 


62  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

sent  Sam  Brewster  a  keen  look  and  thought: 
"So  that  is  why  he  won't  consent  to  these  stones 
being  mined  and  sold!"  . 

Then  the  four  men  rode  up  the  wide  trail  that 
ran  from  the  Cliffs  to  the  house  where  they  found 
a  group  of  girls  and  women  eagerly  awaiting 
them.  Polly  ran  down  the  road  and  caught  hold 
of  her  brother's  stirrup  in  her  impatience  to  wel- 
come him.  John  laughed  and  jumped  from  his 
horse,  then  gave  his  sister  the  kiss  and  hug  she 
expected. 

Anne  Stewart  stood  on  the  porch  watching  this 
little  by-play,  and  when  the  brother  and  sister 
slowly  walked  along,  arm  linked  in  arm,  she 
smiled  and  sighed,  then  turned  to  greet  Tom 
Latimer.  But  she  did  not  see  Mrs.  Brewster's 
watchful  eye  quickly  turn  away  from  her  when 
she  turned  from  watching  John. 

As  Tom  Latimer  was  known  to  the  Maynard 
girls  and  Anne,  having  met  them  at  the  College 
Prom  the  past  year,  he  was  warmly  welcomed  by 
them  as  well  as  by  the  Brewsters.  Barbara  felt 
an  especial  interest  in  him,  as  he  was  "one  of  her 
set"  in  society,  and  he  had  been  invited  to  her 
home  when  her  brother  entertained  a  few  of  his 
college  friends. 

Polly  now  brought  her  brother  up  and  intro 


JOHN  AND  HIS  FRIEND  ARRIVE     63 

duced  him  to  Eleanor  and  Barbara,  but  Anne 
was  not  there. 

"Wh-y — where  did  Anne  go?  She  was  here 
this  minute?"  cried  Polly,  looking  around  in 
amazement. 

Mrs.  Brewster  'had  seen  Anne  steal  away  and 
she  understood  the  reason.  Now  she  quickly 
diverted  attention  by  saying:  "Of  course  you  boys 
have  heard  about  the  awful  land-slide?" 

As  it  was  so  recent  an  event,  it  instantly  ab- 
sorbed all.  Then  Mr.  Brewster  told  about  the 
plans  to  ride  up  the  Trail  on  the  morrow  and 
ascertain  just  how  much  damage  had  been  done. 
John  seemed  to  be  as  excited  a  talker  as  any  one, 
but  his  mother  saw  him  send  many  a  searching 
glance  around  for  some  one  he  had  not  found. 

She  managed  to  reach  his  side  without  attrac- 
ting the  attention  of  the  others,  and  slyly  whis- 
pered: "Anne  Stewart  went  out  towards  the 
Cliffs  a  moment  ago.  I  saw  her  leave  by  the  back 
pathway." 

Then  while  every  one  was  trying  to  make  out 
the  cloud-draped  peak  of  Grizzly  Slide,  having 
had  their  attention  directed  to  it  by  an  exclama- 
tion from  Mrs.  Brewster,  John  backed  away  and 
ran  behind  th<s  kitchen  to  the  path  that  led  to 
the  Cliffs  and  Arme. 


64  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

Jeb  found  it  necessary  to  fill  the  wood-box  in 
the  kitchen,  and  it  was  just  after  John  had  passed 
there  that  he  stumbled  up  the  stone  walk.  Sary 
stood  in  the  doorway  grinning  sympathetically  as 
she  watched  John  dash  away  after  Anne  Stewart, 
when  Jeb  said: 

"Lem'me  get  by  wid  this  load  of  wood." 

She  smirked  and  said:  "Ah,  Jeb!  Thar's  nuth- 
in'  in  the  wurruld  like  young  love,  ain't  it?" 

Now  Sary's  would-be  bewitching  leer  and  her 
dangerous  proximity  to  him,  frightened  Jeb  worse 
than  any  Rocky  Mountain  avalanche  ever,  so 
that  he  forgot  he  held  an  armful  of  wood.  He 
suddenly  went  lax  in  the  muscles,  dropped  the 
wood,  and  turned  to  flee  to  his  hay-loft  where  no 
Sary  dared  follow  without  a  chaperone. 

One  stick  of  the  wood  fell  upon  Sary's  toe, 
and  not  having  "feet  of  brass  or  clay,"  she  uttered 
a  yelp  of  pain.  Jeb  never  stopped  to  inquire  what 
had  caused  that  cry — whether  of  baffled  love  or 
shooting  pains  in  a  toe. 

Sary  limped  over  to  a  wooden  chair  and  sit- 
ting there  with  her  foot  held  tenderly  in  both 
hands,  she  rocked  back  and  forth,  threatening,  in 
an  undertone,  all  males  but  Jeb  in  particular. 

"You-all  jes'  wait!  Don't  think  Sary  Dodd's 
a  fule — cuz  she  hain't!  Ah'J*  git  you  yit,  so  run 


JOHN  AND  HIS  FRIEND  ARRIVE     65 

away  an'  make-out  like-es-how  you  are  free  and 
not  lookin'  to  any  female  in  pertickler!" 

Having  thus  unburdened  her  soul  of  its  wrath 
against  Jeb,  the  cook  limped  over  to  the  stove 
to  hang  the  kettle  over  the  fire. 

Supper  was  late  that  night,  but  no  one  noticed 
it.  Sary  had  perfected  a  scheme  she  was  going 
to  try  on  Jeb,  some  day,  soon,  so  she  was  all 
smiles  and  patience  when  the  family  gathered 
about  the  table. 

"I  see  you  set  the  table  in  the  living-room, 
mother,"  remarked  John,  approvingly. 

"Oh,  we  have  wrought  many  changes  this  sum- 
mer, John,  but  the  best  of  all  is  the  one  whereby 
we  eat  out-of-doors  when  it  is  good  weather. 
To-night  we  will  eat  here  as  it  is  too  dark  under 
the  old  oak,"  explained  Mrs.  Brewster,  smiling. 

Plans  were  now  discussed  for  the  trip  to  Top 
Notch  the  following  morning,  and  it  was  decided 
that  Jeb  should  go  for  Mike  early,  and  secure 
his  services  as  before. 

"If  such  a  crowd  of  men  are  going,  I  don't 
see  why  the  owners  of  the  mine  can't  go,  too. 
We  are  as  safe  there,  as  here,"  grumbled  Polly. 

"Because  we  are  going  to  make  a  three  days' 
trip  of  this,  Poll,  and  women-folk  would  not  feel 
comfortable  with  such  a  lot  of  mixed  men,"  ex- 


66  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

plained  John,  pulling  his  sister's  hair,  lovingly. 

"Well,  Polly  and  I  are  as  good  riders  as  any 
one  of  you,  and  seeing  it  is  our  mine,  we  ought 
to  have  something  to  say  about  it,"  added 
Eleanor,  poutingly. 

"I  suppose  you-all  have  forgotten  that  we  in- 
vited that  nice  young  stranger  and  his  friend, 
Jim  La  timer,  over  to  spend  this  Sunday  with  us," 
now  ventured  Mrs.  Brewster. 

"Oh,  that's  so!  The  boy  Kenneth  who  looks 
like  Montresorl"  Anne  now  added,  understand- 
ing Mrs.  Brewster' s  idea  and  abetting  it. 

"Kenneth  Evans!  Is  it  this  Sunday  he  U 
coming?"  asked  Eleanor  eagerly. 

"We  might  be  back  on  time  for  that;  this 
is  only  Friday  night,  you  know,"  persisted  Polly, 
clinging  to  the  hope  of  riding  to  Top  Notch. 

"No  girl  or  woman  is  going — let  that  end  tha 
argument!"  now  said  Mr.  Brewster,  with  finality. 

There  was  silence  for  a  moment,  then  Polly 
laughingly  said  to  Eleanor:  "Nolla,  you  and  I 
will  ride  over  to  visit  some  old  friends  of  mine 
to-morrow.  We  will  take  our  lunch  and  spend 
the  day  with  them.  As  it  is  half-way  on  the 
Bear  Forks  road  we  might  as  well  ride  with  our 
boys  when  they  go." 

"Polly,  we  plan  to  learc  here  before  <d»wn  so 


JOHN  AND  HIS  FRIEND  ARRIVE     67 

we  can  be  on  the  climb  when  day  breaks.  Nolla 
and  you  will  please  remember  to  be  fast  asleep 
at  that  time.  Good-night!" 

With  these  words,  Sam  Brewster  got  up  and 
started  to  go  to  his  room,  but  Polly  would  not 
allow  her  daddy  to  leave  her  in  that  frame  of 
mind.  So  she  ran  over  and  jumped  up  to  throw 
her  arms  about  his  neck  in  her  usual  fashion. 
What  she  whispered  in  his  ear  no  one  knew  but  he 
smiled  and  nodded  his  head  in  meek  acquiescence. 

"Poll — did  he  say  we  might  go?"  whispered 
Eleanor. 

"No — he  won't  give  in  that  far,  but  he  said  we 
could  ride  with  them  as  far  as  Bear  Forks,  if 
we  were  up  in  time.  Fm  bound  to  wake  up,  so 
now  Fm  going  right  to  bed,"  said  Polly. 

But  Polly  and  Eleanor  did  not  wake  up  in  the 
morning  until  seven  o'clock.  The  riders  were 
far  up  along  the  trail  by  that  time,  so  the  girls 
had  to  make  the  best  of  the  day. 

When  the  men  riders  were  well  along  the 
trail,  Jeb  motioned  to  Mr.  Brewster  that  he  wished 
to  speak  with  him,  so  they  permitted  their  horses 
to  slow  up  and  drop  behind  for  a  time. 

"Ah'm  thinkin',  Mis'r  Brewster,  thet  Ah'll  have 
to  give  notice  that  Ah'm  quittin'  your  ranch.  Not 
what  Ah've  got  any  kick  comin'  about  the  fam'ly 


68  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

• — thar  never  w'ar  a  nicer  one.  But  Ah've  got  ta 
save  mahself." 

"Jeb!"  gasped  Sam  Brewster  in  unbelief. 
"You  couldn't  leave  usl  Why,  man,  you're  one 
of  the  family." 

"Yeh,  Ah  knows  all  that,  Mis'r  Brewster,  but 
Ah  jus'  dasent  stay  where  a  female  badgers  my 
peace  o'  mind." 

"Tell  me  what  is  wrong,  Jeb,  and  Ah'll  fix 
it  if  Ah  can,"  anxiously  promised  Sam  Brewster. 

Jeb  gazed  wildly  about  for,  some  one  to  ex- 
plain for  him,  and  in  gazing,  his  eye  rested  on 
John.  Big  splendid  John  who  had  only  been  a 
little  shaver  when  he  went  to  Pebbly  Pit  to 
work. 

"Oh  John!  Cain't  you-all  drop  back  and  tell 
your  Paw  what  ails  me?"  shouted  Jeb,  certain 
that  John,  who  had  been  to  college,  could  do 
anything. 

John  dropped  behind  his  companions,  and  Sam 
Brewster  hurriedly  explained  that  Jeb  seemed  to 
have  a  queer  belief  that  he  would  be  done  for  if 
he  remained  at  Pebbly  Pit. 

"Oh,  did  Jeb  bother  you  about  that  story,  Dad? 
Here,  you  ride  on  in  my  place,  and  let  me  get 
this  thing  straightened  out." 

Alone  with  Jeb,  John  said  persuasively:  "Now 


JOHN  AND  HIS  FRIEND  ARRIVE     69 

tell  me  all  about  it,  Jeb — begin  from  the  begin- 
ning." 

"Wall,  seein'  es  how  you-all  is  in  love,  mebbe 
you-all  kin  understand  about  this  love-stuff. 

"Now,  yuh  see,  John,  when  that  Sary  Dodd 
come  to  Pebbly  Pit  es  a  widder,  to  help  tyouse- 
work,  she  never  cast  an  eye  around  fer  a  likely 
'second'  until  that  derned  old  dance  at  the  school- 
house.  It  wuz  that  time  when  she  perked  up  in  all 
that  borrered  finery  that  she  landed  a  rich  ole 
bachelor-rancher  on  her  ticket  to  dinner.  But  he 
gave  one  look  and  run.  He  never  showed  up 
again  that  night. 

"Seein'  like-es-how  her  partner  vamoosed,  she 
grabbed  me  to  do  the  Grand  March  with  her. 
Mebbe  it  w'ar  the  way  Ah  danced,  that  took  her 
fancy.  But  whatever  it  w'ar,  she's  ben  locooed 
after  me  sence  that  night. 

"Now,  John,  yuh  know  Sary  ain't  no  prize-win- 
ner fer  looks,  en  Ah  knows  a  good  looker  when 
Ah  seez  one,  cuz  Ah  hev  sat  and  seen  lots  of 
pritty  gals  on  the  movie  sheet  in  Oak  Crick. 
Gosh!  Some  of  them  peaches  Ah  see'd  would 
make  yuh  leave  a  stiddy  job  like  Pebbly  Pit.  So 
Ah  saved  and  saved  till  now  AhVe  got  a  tidy 
bit  laid  by  fer  some  pritty  gal,  like  them  in  the 
Movies. 


70  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

"Ef  Sary  Dodd  knew  Ah  had  money  saved  1 
Phew !  She'd  get  at  it  whar  Ah  hid  it  in  a  hole 
under  the  barn-rafters,  then  she'd  hold  it  out  to 
tempt  me,  like-es-how  yuh  lead  a  balky  cow  to 
be  milked.  But  that  is  one  thing  Sary  don't 
know!" 

John  laughed  loud  and  long  at  the  picture  Jeb 
graphically  sketched  of  Sary  and  himself,  but 
the  orator  cared  nothing  for  John's  laughing.  He 
was  too  concerned  over  his  freedom. 

"Sary's  got  some  good  points — yuh've  got  to 
hand  it  to  her,  even  ef  she  hain't  got  a  figger  like 
Miss  Anne's,  and  hair  like  Miss  Polly's.  But 
she  can  cook!  Gosh,  cain't  she  cook  and  clean. 
So  ef  it  w'ar  a  housekeeper  er  a  business  partner 
Ah  wanted,  Ah  coulden  pick  a  better  one  than  Sary 
Dodd. 

"But  yuh  unnerstand  me,  John,  don't  yuh,  when 
Ah  says  Ah  wants  something  pritty  sittin'  afore 
the  pianner  to  sing  to  me,  or  dressin'  up  in  finery 
like  Miss  Bob's  and  playin'  a  lady?  Ah've  ben 
a  hired  man  and  worked  on  a  ranch  all  mah  life, 
but  now  Ah've  got  a  bit  saved  up  Ah  kin  go  to  the 
city  and  pick  th'  gal  Ah  wants. 

"And  lem'me  tell  yuh,  John!  In  the  Movies 
them  gals  what  looks  so  pritty  make  fine  farm- 
wives.  Gosh,  but  one  city  gal  with  yaller  curls 


JOHN  AND  HIS  FRIEND  ARRIVE     71 

hadn't  a  cent  to  live  on  when  she  met  a  feller 
what  owned  a  little  ranch  in  Arizony.  They 
hooked  up  and  she  was  that  happy  on  the  farm! 
She  churned  the  butter  and  fed  chickens  and  did 
all  the  chores.  And  he  looked  after  the  stock. 
Evenin's  she  played  and  sang  fer  him  and  he  sat 
in  a  big  arm-chair  and  smiled  at  her. 

"That's  the  kind  of  wife  Ah  wants,  John — and 
how  kin  Ah  sit  and  listen  to  Sary  sing?  Mebbe 
she  kin  churn  better'n  that  one  I  saw  in  the  Mov- 
ies, but  Ah  bet  a  plugged  penny  that  she  cain't 
play  a  pianner!" 

Jeb's  tone  was  so  emphatic  at  the  last  accusa- 
tion of  Sary's  short-comings,  that  John  almost 
rolled  from  his  horse  with  laughter. 

Now  Jeb  had  said  all  that  he  had  to  say,  so 
he  waited  patiently  for  John  to  get  over  his 
spasm  of  laughter.  Then  he  looked  at  him  as 
if  to  ask  what  had  he  to  say  about  such  positive 
evidence  as  he  had  brought  forth,  regarding  the 
Movie  girl  making  the  best  kind  of  a  rancher's 
wife? 

"Oh,  Jeb!  How  I  love  your  innocence!" 
gasped  John,  wiping  his  eyes  on  the  back  of  his 
hand.  "I  shall  certainly  sue  the  Movies  for  be- 
traying your  trust  and  faith  in  womenkind.  For 
they  sure  did  more  than  amuse  you  for  .your 


72  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

dime.  You  took  for  a  solid  fact,  all  the  silly 
mush  you  saw  on  the  screen  as  real  life.  But, 
it  was  reel  life,  Jeb,  spelled  with  two  'eV  instead 
of  the  genuine  r-e-a-1  way. 

"Jeb,  how'd  you  like  to  spend  every  nickel 
you've  saved,  on  a  girl  with  dyed  hair,  belladonna 
eyes,  painted  lips  you  could  never  kiss,  blackened 
eye-lashes  and  eye-brows,  and  goodness  only  knows 
what  else  she  puts  on  and  takes  off  to  look  pretty 
in  the  pictures?" 

Jeb  listened  with  loose  jaw  and  wide-opened 
eyes  to  this  strange  description  of  all  the  lady- 
loves he  knew  on  the  screen. 

"Why,  Jeb,  these  blonde  Movie  beauties  have 
a  different  husband  every  few  months.  The  ones 
who  play  star-leads  make  the  biggest  splash  in  the 
puddles,  but  the  little  ones  try  to  mimic  the  big 
stars  and  get  into  all  sorts  of  trouble.  I  haven't 
heard  of  but  two  or  three  who  could  treat  a  good 
husband  decently.  As  for  sitting  at  home  play- 
ing and  singing  for  you — ha,  ha,  hal  It  costs 
about  five  hundred  dollars  each  evening  to  enter- 
tain one  of  them. 

"Churn?  Did  you  say  she  looked  so  cute  in 
a  big  bungalow  apron  churning  the  butter  on  a 
vine-clad  porch?  Didn't  the  porch  open  right  out 
on  a  little  pasture  and  tidy  barnyard,  where  her 


JOHN  AND  HIS  FRIEND  ARRIVE     73 

devoted  husband  could  stand  admiring  her?  Was 
it  a  dear  little  one-and-a-half  story  vine-clad  house 
painted  white,  with  green  wooden  shutters?" 

"Uh,  huh !  Just  so !  Did  you  see  that  gal, 
John?"  eagerly  asked  Jeb. 

"Jeb,  the  Movies  use  that  same  little  house  and 
painted  scenery  for  every  farm-picture  they 
make.  Sometimes  a  deserted  wife  hangs  to  the 
post  of  the  porch  and  plans  to  kill  herself.  Or 
sometimes  it  is  the  husband  who  hears  how  his 
head  man  ran  away  with  his  foolish  little  wife. 
But,  Jeb,  never  believe  anything  you  see  in  the 
Movies,  for  they  have  turned  more  heads  than 
you  can  count,  by  their  subtle  ways.  Everything 
always  ends  right  in  the  Movies,  but  it  is  seldom 
so  in  real  life. 

"Now  do  you  want  my  best  advice,  Jeb?'* 

"Ah  shore  do,  John,  cuz  you-all  knows  what's 
whatl" 

"Then  listen,  Jeb,  and  think  things  over  well 
before  you  leave  Pebbly  Pit  and  take  your  money 
away  to  spend  on  a  pretty  Movie  gal. 

"You  say  that  Sary  is  a  right  smart  cook  and 
houseworker.  You  admit  that  she  is  thrifty,  and 
will  save  that  money  you've  got  hidden  away  in 
the  barn. 

"Now  look  at  that  good-fer-nothing  Bill  Dodd 


74  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

she  married!  In  less  than  a  year  she  had  him 
working  on  a  ranch  that  she  saved  up  for.  Didn't 
she  keep  him  at  it  until  it  was  most  paid  up?  If 
he  hadn't  gone  with  the  flu,  that  ranch'd  been  paid 
for  in  another  year. 

"Sary  isn't  so  feeble,  neither.  She  can  save 
twenty  more  ranches  before  she  cripples  up.  Any 
man  who  has  ambition  would  make  no  mistake 
in  choosing  Sary.  Now  I  believe  Sary  would 
make  a  big  man  of  you,  Jeb. 

"She  may  not  dye  her  hair  or  paint  her  fac«, 
but  she's  got  a  square  look,  and  we-all  know  what 
sound  stock  she  comes  of.  There  isn't  a  better 
family  in  all  Colorado  than  the  Morson's.  And 
Sary  Morson  is  all  there !  She  has  sterling  quali- 
ties that  will  last  after  beauty  and  singing  is  worn 
thread-bare. 

"Of  course  she  isn't  anything  like  Anne  Stewart 
— there  never  was  any  girl  like  her!  But  you 
make  a  big  mistake  if  you  go  away  to  find  a  pretty 
girl,  all  dolled  up  like  the  Movie  Queens,  for  your 
wife.  She'd  take  all  your  money  and  laugh  at 
you  the  next  moment. 

"I've  lived  in  big  cities,  Jeb,  and  seen  a  lot 
of  the  ways  of  pretty  girls  who  dress  up  and  pose 
for  the  boys,  but  not  one  of  that  kind  is  worth 
a  shake.  Take  it  from  me,  Jeb,  you'd  be  happy 


JOHN  AND  HIS  FRIEND  ARRIVE     75 

and  contented  if  you  had  a  ranch  of  your  own, 
and  a  sensible  wife  to  make  you  toe  the  mark. 
You're  too  easy  for  any  other  sort,  Jeb,  although 
you  figure  that  you  need  an  ideal.  Not  so,  my 
man!" 

Jeb  heaved  a  mighty  sigh  as  if  he  was  passing 
on  his  rainbow  dreams  forever.  Then  he  turned 
sorrowful  eyes  on  John. 

"Wall,  Ah  cain't  fergit  that  pooty  gal  in  a 
hurry,  even  when  Sary  heaves  in  sight  wid  a 
heaped  plate  of  puddin'  fer  me.  Ah  s'pose  Ah'll 
hev  to  let  her  marry  me,  er  git  out  to  onct. 
Sence  yuh've  ben  talkin',  Ah  have  a  sort  of  weak- 
enin'  fer  her  capable  ways,  and  shore  ez  shootin', 
she'll  grab  the  first  chanst  Ah  gives  her  to  know 
the  wust,  because  this  is  leap-year." 

John  shouted  with  laughter  again,  and  Tom 
Latimer  turned  back  his  horse  to  ask  what  the 
joke  was  about. 

"Nothing  that  concerns  little  boys  like  you, 
Tom,"  laughed  John,  as  he  winked  at  his  friend. 

"But  I  feel  sure  I  can  be  of  help  to  Jeb  as  well 
as  to  you,  John,"  insisted  Tom. 

"No,  Mis'r  Tom.  It's  all  over,"  sighed  Jeb, 
in  a  funereal  tone.  "Ah've  made  up  mah  mind 
to  take  the  med'cine,  er  beat  it!" 

With  that,  Jeb  spurred  his  horse  on  and  joined 


76  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

his  master,  leaving  John  to  merely  hint  at  the 
great  trouble  that  almost  disrupted  the  household 
at  Pebbly  Pit.  "Now,  thank  Heavens,  I  have 
saved  the  ranch  from  ruin,  and  united  two  hearts 
that  ought  to  beat  as  one,  hereafter!" 

Tom  laughed.  "I'm  glad  you  confessed  to  your 
profession.  I'll  be  wary  of  your  match-making, 
in  the  future." 

"But  you  have  to  find  matches  before  you  can 
make  them,"  laughed  John. 

"You  are  so  blind  that  you  only  see  one  pretty 
girl  at  Pebbly  Pit,  whereas  there  are  four!"  ex- 
claimed Tom,  smilingly. 

"Four!  Anne  Stewart  is  one,  and  Miss  May- 
nard  may  consider  herself  lovely  enough  for  a 
match — I  don't.  But  mother  and  Sary  will  never 
consent  to  your  including  them  in  your  match- 
making." 

"Hah!  I  thought  so!  You  are  so  blind  over 
Anne  Stewart,  that  you  fail  to  see  how  your 
own  little  sister  is  growing  up  to  be  a  stunning 
miss.  Why,  she  will  be  a  beauty  at  twenty,  for 
she  is  on  the  high-way  there  already." 

"Tom!"  gasped  John.  "Wh-y— Polly  is  only 
a  child!" 

"That's  what  all  brothers  think  of  their  pretty 
sisters.  Some  day,  a  fine  young  fellow  will  think 


JOHN  AND  HIS  FRIEND  ARRIVE     77 

differently,  and  you'll  want  to  club  him.  But  the 
trouble  is,  that  Polly  will  think  exactly  as  the  hand- 
some man  thinks,  and  she  will  not  listen  to  her 
big  brother's  advice  to  remain  a  little  girl. 

"Besides  Polly,  there  is  Eleanor  Maynard. 
She,  too,  is  a  fine  girl  and  will  grow  to  wonder- 
ful womanhood.  Now,  John,  take  more  notice 
of  your  'little'  sister,  for  she  is  what  we  boys  call 
a  'peach.'  " 

"Ha,  ha,  ha !  I've  never  heard  you  say  so 
much  about  a  girl  in  my  life !  If  I  didn't  know 
better,  I'd  say  you  were  half-way  in  love  with 
Polly,  yourself.  But  I  know  what  a  quitter  you 
are  whenever  there  is  a  girl  in  the  party,"  laughed 
John. 

Tom  flushed  slightly  but  made  no  reply.  Be- 
fore John  could  tease  him  any  further,  the  party 
reached  Four  Mile  Blaze.  Mike  tolled  off  the 
riders,  and  warned  each  one  to  give  strictest  at- 
tention to  the  going  as  one  misstep  meant  a 
crippled  horse  or  a  serious  accident. 

From  there  on,  the  men  rode  through  the  lodge- 
pole  forest  to  avoid  the  great  mass  of  debris 
formed  of  rocks,  earth,  and  torn-up  trees  that 
obstructed  the  old  trail.  Simms  felt  sure  his  man 
had  escaped  in  some  miraculous  manner,  after 
the  avalanche  swept  him  from  his  feet.  But  see- 


78  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

ing  the  mountains  of  wood-trash  that  were  washed 
down  from  the  peak  and  piled  up  everywhere,  he 
lost  faith. 

Still  he  and  his  men  were  bound  to  make  the 
most  of  the  least  hope,  so  they  sought  thoroughly 
over  the  side  where  the  two  miners  had  been  dis- 
covered, that  day.  Nothing  but  trees,  rocks,  and 
earth  piled  in  toppling  heaps  on  the  steep  slope 
of  the  mountain  were  seen,  however. 

While  Simms  and  Bill  sought  over  every  foot 
of  ground  for  their  missing  friend,  Mike  led  Sam 
Brewster  and  his  two  engineers,  down  the  opposite 
slope,  to  a  blaze  that  told  them  they  were  going 
towards  the  cave.  But  the  nearer  they  came  to  the 
claim,  the  greater  was  the  destruction  of  the  for- 
est. Finally  they  could  see  where  the  ledge  had 
been,  but  so  massed  up  was  the  trash  that  had 
been  swept  down  and  over  the  side,  that  it  was 
impossible  to  reach  the  ravine. 

Mike  chuckled :  "Him  unner  alia  trees  on  Griz- 
zly Sly — him  yaller  insides  safe  miff!" 

"You're  right,  Mike,"  laughed  John.  "If  the 
gold  is  in  that  spot  it  is  safe  enough  for  a  long 
time  to  come." 

"I  think  this  slide  was  the  luckiest  thing  that 
ever  happened  to  the  girls,"  ventured  Tom  Lati- 
mer,  thoughtfully. 


JOHN  AND  HIS  FRIEND  ARRIVE     79 

"Why?"  anxiously  demanded  Mr.  Brewster, 
visions  of  his  darling  being  carried  away  to  school 
uppermost  in  his  mind. 

"When  we  are  ready  to  bore  for  the  gold,  this 
trash  will  be  an  easy  thing  to  burn  and  clear  away. 
Meantime,  it  keeps  off  all  claim-jumpers  or  thieves 
who  need  a  little  hard  yellow  metal." 

"But  you  must  admit  that  it  is  a  tough  proposi- 
tion to  mine  here,"  said  Mr.  Brewster.  "A  land- 
slide is  apt  to  happen  any  moment  and  bury  all 
the  apparatus.  All  previous  efforts  will  be  wiped 
out  and  you  must  begin  all  over  again.  Then 
consider  the  difficulty  of  transportation,  from  this 
peak  down  the  long  trail,  and  over  miles  of  rough 
country  to  the  Oak  Creek  railway." 

"Hoh!  a  mere  bagatelle,  Mr.  Brewster,  when 
gold  weighs  in  the  other  scale.  Why,  men  will 
dig  through  the  earth  for  gold!  See  what  hap- 
pened in  Alaska.  Once  men  found  gold  to  be 
had  for  the  pain  and  privation  they  would  be 
forced  to  endure,  they  gladly  gave  up  home,  loved 
ones, — all — for  the  lust  of  gold. 

"And  see  what  that  drive  did  for  Alaska.  Rail- 
roads opened,  cities  founded,  people  settled  there, 
and  all  because  men  fought  with  odds  against 
finding  buried  gold!" 

"We  wouldn't  have  to  worry  over  this  out-of- 


8o  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

the-way  mine  if  father  would  consent  to  have  his 
cliffs  utilized,"  hinted  John. 

"Not  with  my  consent !"  retorted  Sam  Brewster. 

"Well,  come  on,  Mike.  Let's  pitch  camp  and 
get  something  to  eat,"  said  John,  resignedly. 

"It's  not  that  I  have  any  silly  sentiment  over 
the  cliffs,  my  boys — don't  mistake  me  there.  But 
I  have  a  serious  reason  for  refusing  to  coin  money 
out  of  that  beauty — at  least  for  a  few  years  to 


come." 


"If  I  guess  the  truth  about  it,  will  you  admit 
it  to  me  some  day?"  quizzed  Tom  La  timer,  his 
eyes  twinkling. 

"No,  sir!  Not  even  to  my  wife — it's  my 
secret!" 


CHAPTER  V 

POLLY  AND  ELEANOR  VISIT  THE  BEAVERS 

AFTER  breakfast  the  four  girls  asked  each 
other  what  there  was  to  do.  They  had  had  so 
much  excitement  all  week,  that  the  simple  life 
palled  on  them. 

"It's  exactly  like  drinking  milk  after  you  have 
been  kept  on  spice-beer  for  a  long  time,"  laughed  t 
Eleanor. 

"Well,  Nolla  and  I  have  an  invitation  to  spend 
the  day  with  friends  of  mine.  We  can  ride  over 
there  any  time,"  said  Polly. 

"Then  for  goodness'  sake,  come  on!  I'll  be 
asleep  again  if  we  don't  do  something,"  exclaimed 
Eleanor. 

"All  right,  I'll  saddle  Noddy  and  you  can  have 
Choko.  We  will  have  to  harness  them  ourselves 
now  that  Jeb  is  away,  and  the  other  hands  are 
working  on  the  ranch." 

"You're  not  going  far,  are  you?"  asked  Anne, 
suspiciously. 

to 


82  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

Polly  laughed.  "Not  as  far  as  we  went  yes- 
terday." 

Mrs.  Brewster  had  been  told  where  Polly 
planned  to  take  Eleanor,  and  she  smiled  approv- 
ingly. A  nice  luncheon  was  packed  up  and  placed 
in  the  panniers  of  the  burros,  and  the  three  grown- 
ups stood  and  watched  the  two  girls  ride  down 
the  trail  to  Rainbow  Cliff. 

As  they  went,  Eleanor  said:  "Did  you  men- 
tion the  name  of  your  friends?  I  forgot,  if  you 
have." 

Polly  laughed.  "Maybe  I  told  you,  but  I  don't 
remember  now.  Anyway,  you  wouldn't  know 
them  if  I  did  tell  you  their  names." 

"But  what  do  you  call  them  when  you  address 
them?" 

"I  always  call  the  old  one  'Grandfather,'  but 
he  has  a  large  family  that  I  never  bother  with. 
He  is  our  friend. 

"This  family  lives  and  does  queer  things  that 
no  city  folks  ever  dream  of,"  added  Polly. 

"Something  like  that  Halsey  woman,  eh?" 
laughed  Eleanor,  who  had  heard  from  Sary  about 
the  disobedient  children. 

"The  Beavers  are  too  polite  to  force  their 
company  on  us.  And  as  we  may  not  care  to  eat 


POLLY  AND  ELEANOR  VISIT       83 

as  they  do,  I  decided  to  bring  lunch,  which  we  can 
enjoy  by  ourselves,"  explained  Polly. 

Noddy  and  Choko  now  reached  the  trail  lead- 
ing up  the  pine-tipped  crest  of  the  mountain  back 
of  Pebbly  Pit,  and  were  soon  climbing  through 
a  veritable  wilderness  of  sage-brush  and  aspens. 

"My,  what  a  place  to  live  in!"  said  Eleanor, 
surprised. 

"It's  not  far,  now,"  returned  Polly. 

Shortly  after  this,  Polly  turned  Noddy  from 
the  old  trail  and  plunged  into  a  thicket  of  aspens. 

"Good  gracious!  How  can  they  ever  find 
their  own  home?"  wondered  Eleanor,  gazing  at 
the  closely  growing  aspen  trees. 

"They  know  everything!  And  Noddy  knows 
the  way  by  this  time,  too,  as  I  like  to  come  here 
and  spend  the  day.  Besides  there  are  blazes  on 
the  large  trees  to  guide  one." 

Noddy  came  out  of  the  aspen  grove  after  a 
time  and  then  followed  a  mountain-stream  up- 
trail  for  half  a  mile  or  so,  before  turning  to  look 
at  her  rider. 

"Oh,  you  wise  little  Noddy.  How  did  you 
know  I  wanted  to  stop  here?"  laughed  Polly,  pat- 
ting the  burro  affectionately. 

Noddy  flicked  back  her  long  ears  in  approval 


84  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

of  such  words  and  petting,  but  Eleanor's  cry 
made  the  burro  listen  intently. 

"Polly!  What  a  dreadful  place  to  live  in  I 
Surely  no  one  exists  in  this  lonesome  wilderness, 
do  they?" 

"Mr.  Beaver  is  clearing  away  the  aspens  just 
as  fast  as  he  can,  but  as  soon  as  they  are  all  cut 
down,  he  will  move  the  whole  family  to  some 
other  dense  grove,  as  they  live  on  aspens,  you 
know." 

"What — what!  I  didn't  understand  you!" 
cried  Eleanor. 

Polly  laughed  as  she  pointed  to  a  pond  made 
by  a  dam  crudely  built  across  the  stream.  It 
was  rough  and  queer  looking,  but  it  answered  its 
purpose  very  well. 

Eleanor  saw  half  a  dozen  conical  shaped  huts 
built  of  mud  in  a  row  across  the  dam,  then  she 
stared  at  both  sides  of  the  stream,  up  and  down, 
but  no  other  habitation  could  she  see.  On  the 
opposite  bank  several  large  trees  had  been  felled 
and  a  quantity  of  aspens  had  been  cut  down 
and  piled  in  confusion  on  the  edge  of  the 
water. 

"Do  your  ranchers  live  near  hear?"  asked  she. 

"I  didn't  say  they  were  ranchers,  Nolla." 

"Well,  woodcutters,  or  what  you  call  them!" 


POLLY  AND  ELEANOR  VISIT       85; 

"Yes,"  laughed  Polly,  "they  are  woodcutters 
and  live  in  those  mud  huts." 

"What?"  cried  Eleanor  again. 

"S-sh !  Not  so  loud  or  you  will  frighten  them 
away!" 

"Polly — impossible!  What  do  you  mean  any- 
way?" ' 

"The  beavers  live  there  until  the  family  grows 
too  large,  then  they  either  build  another  story 
to  the  house,  or  start  a  new  colony  where  aspens 
can  be  had  in  plenty.  As  there  are  so  many  young 
aspens  here  in  perfect  security,  for  the,  beavers, 
Grandfather  Beaver  remains  here." 

"Oh,  Polly !  You  mean  they  are  real  beavers!" 
gasped  Eleanor. 

"Yes,  and  I  knew  you  would  love  to  see  them 
at  work,  but  we  have  to  keep  very  quiet  if  we 
want  them  to  come  out." 

"Tell  me  about  them — quick — before  we  have 
to  go  away,"  begged  Eleanor,  eagerly. 

"We  won't  have  to  go,  but  we  have  to  keep 
quiet.  You  see  they  must  have  been  cutting  as- 
pens over  there,  when  they  heard  us  coming  and 
so  they  made  a  dive  for  safety.  They  are  now 
hiding  in  the  huts." 

"What  can  we  do  to  coax  them  out  again?" 

"We'll  lead  the  burros  to  the  park  to  graze, 


86  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

and  we'll  come  back  and  sit  quietly  on  this  rock 
to  watch  for  them." 

So  the  two  burros  were  taken  to  a  small  near- 
by clearing  where  buffalo  grass  offered  a  juicy 
repast  for  them.  Having  hobbled  them  to  keep 
them  from  straying,  Polly  led  the  way  back  to 
the  beaver-dam. 

"If  you  were  over  there  to  examine  those  cut 
aspens  you  would  find  each  one  about  eighteen 
inches  long  and  about  one  and  a  half  inches  thick. 
The  beavers  always  build  near  an  aspen  grove, 
as  it  is  their  food,  but  not  finding  a  grove  near 
the  water,  they  have  to  swim  up  or  down  until 
they  reach  what  they  need.  That  is  why  you 
find  their  huts  on  water,"  explained  Polly. 

"But  I've  heard  they  are  water  animals." 

Before  Polly  could  reply,  a  sleek  head  bobbed 
up  from  the  water  near  one  of  the  huts  and 
Eleanor  gasped  with  surprise.  The  beaver  swam 
to  the  opposite  bank  where  the  trees  had  been 
cut  down.  He  climbed  quickly  out  of  the  stream 
and  started  to  roll  a  heavy  log  over  the  ground 
until  it  splashed  down  into  the  pond.  He  then 
jumped  after  it  and  continued  rolling  and  push- 
ing it  along  till  he  reached  the  dam.  Instantly, 
more  beavers  came  out  from  the  huts  and  assisted 
in  towing  the  log  to  their  dam  of  aspens. 


POLLY  AND  ELEANOR  VISIT       87 

"Oh,  oh,  Polly!"  whispered  Eleanor  in  excited 
astonishment,  but  Polly  held  her  finger  over  her 
lips  in  warning. 

"I  do  believe  they  plan  to  build  a  new  dam 
further  up-stream,  Nolla.  If  that  is  so,  we  will 
have  something  worth  while  to  watch  for  dur- 
ing the  next  few  days.  Just  now  they  are  re- 
pairing the  old  houses  for  the  Winter,  and  that 
log  is  to  be  a  bulwark  about  which  green  cuttings 
of  willow  and  young  aspens  can  be  woven  as  a 
partial  strainer  for  the  water.  The  debris  that 
thus  collects  in  the  chinks  between  the  cuttings, 
makes  the  dam  firmer  and  yet  more  flexible  than 
a  solid  structure  would." 

Just  then,  the  sound  of  a  falling  tree  made 
Eleanor  jump  and  look  across  the  stream. 

"Other  industrious  beavers  cutting  down  an- 
other tree,"  explained  Polly. 

"How  do  they  ever  do  it,  Poll?" 

"If  you  watch,  you  will  see  that  beaver  go  to 
work." 

Not  one  beaver  appeared,  but  four  that  hur- 
ried to  the  bank  and  moved  the  newly  cut  tree 
into  the  water.  One  of  the  four  dragged  the 
tree  with  its  branches  still  on,  into  the  mid-stream 
where,  catching  a  heavy  branch  between  his  teeth, 
he  steered  it  to  the  row  of  huts. 


88  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

Directly  back  of  the  first  one,  swam  the  other 
three,  each  dragging  a  section  of  tree  to  deposit 
on  the  dam,  where  an  old  beaver  was  hard  at 
work.  As  soon  as  the  first  beaver  reached  the 
huts,  the  old  fellow  gave  a  peculiar  call  that 
brought  out  a  score  or  more  of  workers.  They 
all  went  to  their  tasks  as  if  drilled  by  a  master. 

"My  old  Grandfather  is  not  there  this  morn- 
ing, or  that  other  boss  would  not  be  taking  his 
place,"  whispered  Polly. 

Eleanor  had  been  using  her  eyes  to  good  ad- 
vantage and  now  called  to  Polly  anxiously. 
"Look  a'there,  Polly!  Those  beavers  are  eat- 
ing the  tree !" 

"They're  not  eating  it  but  are  cutting  it  down. 
Now  you  watch  and  you  will  see  how  they  do  it." 

The  tree  in  question,  stood  on  the  shore  and 
was  about  six  inches  in  diameter  and  about  sixteen 
feet  in  height.  The  boss  of  another  group  of 
beavers  tested  the  tree  by  placing  his  fore-paws 
against  the  trunk  and  spreading  out  his  hind  legs 
as  a  bracer.  He  sat  upon  his  tail  and  took  a 
deliberate  bite  from  the  bark.  No  wonder  Elea- 
nor thought  he  was  eating  the  tree! 

After  gnawing  at  one  side,  he  thumped  the 
ground  with  his  extended  tail  and  ran  away. 
Other  beavers  took  his  place  and  began  cutting  in 


POLLY  AND  ELEANOR  VISIT       89 

much  the  same  manner.  Then  the  boss  beaver, 
who  was  superintending  the  work,  pushed  the 
workers  away  and  showed  them  how  to  work  in 
a  better  way.  This  done,  the  boss  thumped  the 
ground  with  his  tail — just  as  a  policeman  strikes 
the  walk  with  his  night-club — and  the  cutters  went 
back  to  work. 

Suddenly  the  boss  thumped  the  ground  re- 
peatedly and  the  cutters  ran  to  a  safe  distance. 
A  moment  later,  the  tree  began  swaying  and 
crashed  down  into  the  pond.  It  had  been  so  cut 
and  planned  that  labor  and  time  would  be  saved 
by  throwing  it  directly  into  the  stream. 

It  was  towed  down  into  the  general  harvest- 
pile  and  left  for  other  colonists  to  saw  into  re- 
quired shape  and  length  for  the  additions  to  their 
huts. 

Soon  after  this,  a  number  of  beavers  came  forth 
and  swam  to  the  extreme  upper  end  of  the  pond. 
Here  they  climbed  up;  on  the  bank  and  disappeared 
from  sight  in  the  aspen-covered  forest. 

"Where  are  they  going?"  asked  Eleanor,  anxi- 
ously. 

"We'll  soon  find  out!"  declared  Polly. 

As  Polly  spoke,  a  beaver  swam  along  the  bank 
and  scrambled  out  quite  near  the  spot  where  the 
two  girls  sat  quietly  watching.  He  sniffed  and 


90  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

then  plunged  back  to  hurry  to  the  huts  where 
he  must  have  reported  the  result  of  his  trip. 
Immediately  after,  the  boss  commanded  him  to 
lead  the  way,  and  both  returned  to  the  place  for 
a  thorough  investigation. 

The  scout  brought  his  boss  up  the  bank  and 
sniffed.  Polly  and  Eleanor  were  quivering  with 
excitement,  as  they  saw  the  beavers  making  for 
the  trail. 

"Let's  see  what  is  wrong?"  whispered  Polly, 
cocking  her  rifle  in  case  of  emergency. 

"Oh,  don't  do  that!"  cried  Eleanor,  catching 
hold  of  Polly's  arm. 

"Stop !  Let  go — that  is  how  accidents  happen. 
You  drag  on  one's  arm  and  the  trigger,  all  ready 
to  fire,  is  pulled  accidentally.  I  know  what  I  am 
about,  so  you  need  have  no  concern." 

Eleanor  felt  chagrined  and  meekly  followed 
Polly  after  this.  They  crept  through  the  woods 
without  making  a  sound. 

The  two  beavers  reached  the  clearing  where 
Noddy  and  Choko  were  grazing,  and  the  moment 
the  boss  saw  the  burros,  he  turned  and  snapped 
at  the  foolish  scout  that  had  brought  him  this 
journey  for  naught!  But  the  subdued  laughter 
from  the  girls  made  the  beavers  rush  pell-mell  into 


POLLY  AND  ELEANOR  VISIT       91 

the  pond  to  wonder  whether  burros  could  laugh 
like  that! 

On  the  way  back  to  their  rock  of  observation, 
Polly  said,  "Beavers  are  slow  and  awkward  on 
land  so  that  the  agile  panther,  the  alert  wild- 
cat, or  wolves  and  bears,  form  a  constant  menace 
td  them.  Because  of  their  unwieldy  and  short 
legs,  they  cannot  escape  quickly,  but  in  water  they 
are  wonderful  swimmers,  so,  water  being  necessary 
to  their  safety,  they  build  their  huts  on  the  dams 
that  will  not  bear  up  other  wild  animals.  If  their 
dams  were  constructed  solidly,  the  beavers  would 
soon  be  extinct,  as  forest  savages  would  crawl 
over  and  glut  on  the  helpless  prey." 

"Didn't  you  say  we  could  follow  those  other 
ones  that  went  up-stream?"  asked  Eleanor. 

"Yes,  come  on,"  replied  Polly,  leading  the  way 
for  some  distance  before  seeing  a  sign  of  a  beaver 
again.  Then  suddenly,  she  clutched  hold  of  Elea- 
nor's arm. 

"Ah,  there's  Grandfather,  hard  at  work!" 

"Where — which?"  cried  Eleanor,  eagerly. 

"The  one  with  a  limp  and  a  twisted  back!" 

The  girls  had  reached  a  place  where  the  stream 
widened  and  here  they  found  a  great  number  of 
beavers  at  work.  Some  cutting,  some  dragging, 


92  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

others  swimming  with  aspens,  willows  and  alders, 
and  all  ordered  about  by  an  old  crippled  beaver. 

But  despite  his  twisted  back  and  decided  halt 
in  gait,  he  moved  about  quicker  than  the  others, 
showing  them  where  to  place,  how  to  saw, 
when  to  cut  the  aspens,  and  other  important  de- 
tails of  construction. 

"There  are  a  lot  of  pines,  Polly — why  doesn't 
he  use  them?" 

"A  beaver  doesn't  like  the  smelly,  pitchy  wood, 
so  they  never  cut  them  unless  they  have  to  clear 
a  roadway  from  an  aspen  grove  to  the  stream 
of  water." 

"Then  they  ought  to  use  all  those  trees  already 
down.  There  are  lots  that  have  been  felled  by 
forest  fires,  I  guess." 

"There  again  they  show  their  wisdom,"  ex- 
plained Polly.  "A  beaver  never  cuts  dead  wood 
as  it  dulls  and  injures  his  teeth.  And  dead  wood 
does  not  last  like  live  trees,  either." 

At  this  moment,  Grandfather  Beaver  seemed 
to  sniff  a  familiar  as  well  as  a  doubtful  presence. 
He  lifted  his  nose  high  and  thumped  his  tail  for 
an  assistant.  Leaving  commands  with  this  bea- 
ver, the  Grandfather  went  into  the  stream  and 
swam  away. 

Eleanor  was  sorry  to  lose  sight  of  him,  but  al- 


POLLY  AND  ELEANOR  VISIT       93 

most  before  she  could  speak,  the  old  fellow  rose 
laboriously  from  the  water  just  in  front  of  her. 
He  waited,  sniffing  anxiously,  but  found  a  stranger 
with  his  friend,  so  he  half-slid  back  into  the 
stream. 

Polly  made  strange  sounds  and  ran  down  to- 
wards him.  To  Eleanor's  amazement  the  old 
fellow  actually  expressed  joy  at  seeing  a  friend. 
He  emitted  peculiar  sounds  and  Polly  stood  a  few 
feet  away  uttering  queer  sounds,  too.  Then  he 
sent  her  a  look  of  love — if  there  ever  was  one — 
and  after  this  welcome  he  slid  back  into  the  water 
to  continue  the  work  as  overseer. 

"Polly  Brewster — I  never  in  all  my  life !" 
gasped  Eleanor. 

Polly  laughed  as  she  watched  her  beaver  join 
the  workers  and  scold  them  for  laziness  while  he 
was  absent  visiting  a  friend. 

"Let's  get  the  burros,  now,  and  I'll  show  you 
a  place  where  we  can  lunch  while  I  tell  you  how 
Grandfather  and  I  got  to  know  each  other  so 
well,"  suggested  Polly. 

As  the  girls  rode  along  the  up-trail,  Polly  told 
the  stor^. 

*  "A  few  years  ago,  while  out  adventuring,  I 
found  this  colony  of  beavers.  I  wanted  father 

*  A  true  story. 


94  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

to  come  with  me  and  see  them,  but  he  was  too 
busy  that  year. 

"The  following  Summer,  however,  he  came  and 
we  sat  on  the  same  rock  where  you  and  I  sat 
to-day. 

"We  had  to  wait  for  ten  minutes  or  more, 
before  a  beaver  came  out  of  his  hut  in  the  dam. 
It  was  not  as  large  or  strong  a  dam,  then,  as 
now.  The  beaver  was  anxious  to  reach  a  spot 
in  the  aspen  grove  where  we  could  hear  the  other 
beavers  at  work. 

"To  reach  the  grove,  he  had  to  come  up  out 
of  the  stream  and  cross  some  land  to  the  other 
pond.  Just  as  he  climbed  up  from  the  water, 
he  sniffed  danger.  He  was  directly  opposite 
us  and  we  could  see  everything  very  plainly. 

"Father  lifted  his  rifle  slowly  and  very  care- 
fully, and  I  looked  intently  to  see  what  it  was 
that  he  saw. 

"On  a  bough  of  a  tree  almost  directly  over  the 
beaver,  I  saw  a  lithe  serpentine  thing  twitching 
as  if  a  snake  was  trying  to  curl  up.  But  I  knew 
it  wasn't  a  snake.  It  must  be  the  long  tail  of 
a  panther  who  was  crouching  for  a  leap,  but  I 
could  not  distinguish  a  body  back  of  the  foliage 
of  the  tree. 

"The  beaver  stood  uncertain  of  action  for  a 


POLLY  AND  ELEANOR  VISIT       95 

moment,  and  as  he  turned  to  dive  again  to  safety, 
the  mountain-lion  sprang.  At  the  same  instant, 
father  pulled  the  trigger.  But  the  panther 
landed  almost  on  top  of  the  beaver's  back,  while 
the  shot  must  have  grazed  his  head,  making  him 
rage  furiously. 

"The  beaver,  who  was  on  the  verge  of  the 
stream,  fought  valiantly  with  teeth  and  his  power- 
ful strength,  but  the  lion  had  the  upper  hold  on 
him.  Slowly  the  two  squirmed  and  rolled,  the 
beaver  trying  to  drag  his  enemy  into  the  stream, 
and  the  panther  fighting  to  keep  his  prey  on  land. 

"  'Father — shoot — shoot !  Even  if  you  kill  the 
beaver!'  I  yelled,  as  I  closed  my  eyes  from  the 
awful  sight. 

"But  daddy  already  had  taken  aim  and  even  as 
I  spoke,  he  pulled  the  trigger.  This  time  his 
shot  took  effect  for  we  saw  the  beast  loose  his 
hold  on  the  beaver  and  roll  over  writhing  in 
agony. 

"Father  rushed  along  the  bank  and  crept  over 
the  beaver-dam  to  the  other  side.  Then  he  put 
the  lion  out  of  pain  with  a  third  shot,  and  stooped 
to  examine  the  beaver. 

"We  always  take  a  doctor's  pocket-case  when 
going  on  a  trip,  and  father  now  took  it  out,  so  I 
knew  the  beaver  was  not  dead. 


96  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

"  'Poll,  try  to  come  over  here  and  bring  a  pan, 
sheath-knife,  and  some  hartshorn  from  the  pack.' 

"I  did  as  I  was  told,  and  stood  helping  father 
when  the  beaver  came  too — after  getting  a  big 
whiff  of  hartshorn.  We  washed  the  torn  flesh 
with  water,  and  father  poured  on  something  from 
a  bottle  that  made  the  old  fellow  squirm,  but  he 
sensed  that  we  were  helping  him  and  he  offered 
no  resistance. 

"Well,  Nolla,  when  we  were  done  with  our 
surgical  work,  you  just  ought  to  have  seen  that 
beaver's  gratitude  shining  from  his  round  eyes. 

"When  he  had  recovered  sufficiently  to  start 
for  home,  father  swam  beside  him.  And  it  was 
well  he  did  for  the  poor  fellow  could  not  have 
made  it  alone.  Father  towed  him  across  the 
pond  and  left  him  on  the  dam.  There,  the  boss 
(for  he  was  the  boss  of  the  colony)  made  a  strange 
sound  and  instantly,  a  score  of  beavers  came  out. 

"Meantime,  father  had  left  him  alone  while 
I  stood  a  distance  away  and  watched  the  scene 
eagerly.  As  many  beavers  as  could  get  near  him, 
managed  to  roll  and  push  him  up  on  the  dam 
where  he  lay  stretched  out. 

"Father  did  not  think  the  poor  thing  would 
recover,  but  I  thought  he  would,  so  we  went  back 
the  next  day,  but  he  had  disappeared. 


POLLY  AND  ELEANOR  VISIT       97 

"We  wished  we  could  find  out  in  some  way, 
whether  our  friend  was  recovering  or  whether  he 
had  died  and  was  buried  by  his  family.  So  father 
decided  to  creep  out  on  the  dam  and  investigate. 
I  went,  too,  and  no  sooner  had  we  tried  to  make 
the  same  queer  sound  the  Grandfather  had  made 
that  day,  than  a  beaver  poked  his  nose  out  of  a 
hut  and  sniffed.  Quickly  he  disappeared  again, 
but  in  a  few  moments,  he  came  out  and  stood 
quite  close  to  us  making  queer  sounds  at  us.  He 
was  not  afraid,  so  we  took  it  that  he  was  report- 
ing on  the  health  of  our  friend. 

"We  did  not  see  Grandfather  again  that  Sum- 
mer, so  early  last  Spring  I  went  to  visit  my  colony, 
and  there  was  my  friend,  bossing  things  as  usual. 
But  his  back  was  crooked  and  he  had  to  walk  with 
a  lame  twist,  so  I  suppose  that  lion  injured  his 
backbone. 

"I  made  a  queer  sound  and  he  listened.  He 
recognized  me  and  swam  over  to  thump  his  tail 
on  the  ground  in  front  of  my  rock.  I  was  so  de- 
lighted that  I  rushed  home  and  brought  father 
over.  Then  you  should  have  seen  that  beaver! 
He  squirmed,  and  barked,  and  thumped  his  tail. 
It  was  like  the  meeting  of  a  long-lost  friend. 
Father  was  so  impressed  by  the  incident  that  he 
went  to  Denver  and  secured  permission  from  the 


98  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

Government  Land  Survey  Office  to  establish  a  per- 
manent  reserve  here  for  the  beavers.  Now  they 
have  law  protection  and  may  rest  unmolested  by 
hunters  or  trappers." 

"Oh,  Polly!  It's  just  like  a  fairy  tale,  but 
much  more  interesting.  What  became  of  the 
nasty  panther?"  cried  Eleanor. 

"He's  stretched  on  our  living-room  floor — that 
skin  by  the  fire-place.  We  had  an  awful  time 
lugging  the  beast  home,  but  I  was  determined  to 
walk  on  his  head  every  chance  1  got,  so  we  swung 
him  on  a  pole  and  managed  to  induce  the  horses  to 
be  reasonable  about  the  dead  creature." 

By  the  time  Polly  had  concluded  her  story, 
the  burros  reached  the  bluff  where  the  girls  camped 
and  prepared  luncheon.  This  day  of  closer  inti- 
macy for  the  two  girls,  sealed  a  life-long  friendship 
between  them.  Neither  girl  had  ever  had  a  chum 
of  her  own  age,  and  now  they  found  so  much  to 
admire  and  respect  in  each  other  that  their  com- 
panionship continued  without  the  usual  envy,  quar- 
rels or  jealousies  so  common  in  school  life  between 
school-mates. 


THE  PANTHER  WAS  ABOUT  TO  LEAP  UPON  THE  BEAVER. 
Polly  and  Eleanor.  PaSe  94 


CHAPTER  VI 

THE  GIRLS  ENTERTAIN  GUESTS 

DURING  the  absence  of  Polly  and  Eleanor  from 
Pebbly  Pit,  that  Saturday,  Mrs.  Brewster  made 
preparations  for  the  entertainment  of  the  young 
visitors  who  were  expected  on  the  morrow.  So 
many  days  that  week  had  been  wasted  in  riding 
about  the  country  that  the  pantry  was  almost  bare. 
Chickens  were  killed  and  dressed,  pies  baked,  and 
other  delectable  viands  made  ready  for  Sunday's 
dinner  and  tea. 

No  word  had  come  from  the  scouting  party  on 
Grizzly  Slide,  but  Mrs.  Brewster  said  she  had  no 
idea  of  hearing  from  them  until  they  had  com- 
pleted their  investigations  and  returned  home. 
Polly  and  Eleanor  were  well  tired  out  when  they 
reached  the  house,  after  their  visit  to  the  beavers, 
and  made  no  demur  when  early  bed  was  suggested 
to  them. 

Sunday  was  a  glorious  day  and  the  girls  bustled 

99 


loo  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

around  rearranging  the  living-room,  and  seeing 
that  the  hammock  with  its  cushions  and  the  wicker 
porch  chairs,  were  invitingly  placed.  Their  own 
appearance  had  been  seriously  discussed  so  that 
both  girls  felt  suitably  dressed  when  the  time  came 
for  the  young  surveyors  to  arrive. 

Eleanor  had  loaned  Polly  one  of  her  prettiest 
organdies,  and  had  arranged  her  really  beautiful 
hair  becomingly.  Silk  stockings  now  encased 
Polly's  shapely  limbs,  and  her  new  low  shoes 
looked  twice  as  well  with  the  sheen  of  silk  above 
them. 

Eleanor  wore  a  dress  similar  to  the  one  Polly 
had  on,  and  tried  to  appear  as  like  her  as  possible, 
so  that  no  unfair  advantage  should  arise  from 
appearances.  Barbara  smiled  scornfully  at  what 
she  considered  "childishness"  in  Eleanor.  "Why 
should  she  want  to  have  Polly  look  as  well  as  she 
could?  And  why  bother,  anyway,  to  dress  up 
for  a  nobody  like  Kenneth  Evans?  Of  course, 
it  would  be  all  right  for  Jim  Latimer — if  he  were 
at  home — but  not  in  the  wilderness.  Chances 
were  that  the  boys  would  wear  everyday  working 
clothes."  But  all  her  "cold  water"  failed  to  dam- 
pen the  spirits  of  the  girls. 

The  hour  for  the  boys'  expected  appearance 


THE  GIRLS  ENTERTAIN  GUESTS     101 

came  and  went  but  no  sound  of  horse-hoof  was 
heard  echoing  from  the  rocky  trail  that  led  past 
the  Cliffs. 

"Why !  It  is  now  eleven,  and  they  were  to  be 
here  at  ten-thirty,"  remarked  Eleanor,  hearing  the 
old  clock  strike  the  hour. 

"Are  you  sure  that  that  foolish-looking  boy  un- 
derstood he  was  to  tell  Jim  about  coming  here 
Sunday?"  asked  Barbara,  feeling  rather  pleased 
that  the  girls  felt  fidgety  over  the  nonappearance 
of  their  company. 

"He  wasn't  foolish-looking  at  all!  In  fact  I 
never  saw  such  a  fine  head  with  such  intelligence 
as  he  had,"  retorted  Eleanor. 

"Come  on,  Nolla,  let's  walk  down  to  the  Cliffs 
and  sit  up  on  the  'Guards'  where  we  can  see  the 
trail  all  the  way  to  Bear  Forks,"  suggested  Polly, 
jumping  up  from  the  chair. 

"All  right!  we  may  meet  them  before  we  get 
there,"  added  Eleanor. 

"You  two  certainly  are  acting  silly  over  a  mere 
boy  you  know  nothing  about!"  snapped  Barbara, 
who  felt  peeved  at  losing  the  targets  for  her  sar- 
casm. 

The  only  reply  given  this  parting  shot  was  a 
merry  laugh.  Both  girls  skipped  blithely  along 


102  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

the  path  and  were  soon  out  of  sight  where  the 
roadway  ran  behind  the  steep  banks  of  the  ter« 
race. 

"Now  that  we  are  out  of  the  way  of  Bob's 
eyes  and  tongue,  let's  go  slower  or  we'll  spoil  our 
shoes,"  said  Eleanor,  stopping  to  see  if  any  dust 
showed  on  her  shiny  toes. 

"And  we  won't  climb  the  high  Guards,  but  just 
sit  on  the  ledge  nearest  the  trail,"  added  Polly. 

The  Sunday  dinner  hour  at  Pebbly  Pit  was  usu- 
ally at  one  o'clock,  so  everything  was  ready  and 
waiting  just  before  that  time.  But  no  visitors 
appeared,  and  Mrs.  Brewster  sent  Anne  down 
the  road  to  see  if  the  girls  and  boys  were  visit- 
ing the  Causeway  and  other  unusual  features  of 
Rainbow  Cliffs. 

"Oh,  Anne!  Are  you  alone?"  called  Eleanor, 
when  she  saw  the  messenger  coming  from  the 
house. 

"Yes — are  you?"  returned  Anne,  shading  her 
eyes  from  the  sun,  as  she  looked  up  at  the  ledge. 

"Come  on  up,"  Polly  called,  leaning  over  the 
rocks. 

Anne  soon  joined  them  and  looked  around. 
"Where  do  you  suppose  those  boys  can  be?" 

"That's  just  what  we  want  to  know.  I'm  sure 
we  were  plain  enough  in  telling  that  boy  that  he 


THE  GIRLS  ENTERTAIN  GUESTS     103 

was  to  come  over  with  Jim  Latimer  for  Sunday 
— weren't  we?"  demanded  Eleanor. 

"I  thought  it  was  plain  enough,  but  Bob  de- 
clares that  the  boy  was  too  stupid  to  understand 
a  simple  invitation.  She  is  in  her  glory  because 
every  one  is  disappointed,"  said  Anne. 

"I  wouldn't  let  her  see  me  feeling  bad  for  any- 
thing!" exclaimed  Polly,  stiffly.  "But  I  do  wish 
they  would  come,  because  I  wanted  to  find  out  if 
he  ever  knew  any  one  like  our  Old  Man  Mon- 
tresor." 

"Look!  See  way  over  there — out  on  the  Bear 
Forks  road?"  now  exclaimed  Eleanor,  pointing 
away  towards  the  distant  trail. 

"Sure  enough !"  breathed  Anne,  with  relief. 

"But  there  are  three,  and  we  only  expected  two. 
Who  can  the  other  one  be?"  added  Polly. 

"Maybe  they  are  not  our  company,  at  all,  but 
some  ranchers  riding  that  way,"  suggested  Elea- 
nor, fearfully. 

"Ranchers  seldom  ride  that  trail,  and  never 
on  Sundays.  Now  look!"  said  Polly. 

The  three  horses  had  stopped  and  soon,  one 
rider  was  seen  going  along  the  trail  to  O»k  Creek, 
while  the  other  two  turned  in  at  the  gulch  trail 
and  disappeared  under  the  giant  over-hanging 
rocks. 


104  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

"Hurrah!"  shouted  Eleanor,  waving  her  sun- 
hat  wildly  about  her  head. 

"I  reckon  our  company  is  coming,  after  all," 
said  Polly,  smiling  with  satisfaction. 

"I'll  run  back  and  tell  your  mother,  Polly,  as 
it  will  be  at  least  half  an  hour  before  they  can 
reach  the  house,"  said  Anne,  happy  also  that  Bar- 
bara was  to  be  silently  contradicted. 

"Don't  dally  around  here,  girls,  when  your  com- 
pany joins  you,"  advised  Anne,  turning  around, 
after  she  had  started  down  the  cliff-side. 

"I  reckon  we'd  better  go  back  with  you — mother 
can  be  the  first  to  say  how-dy  to  them,"  ventured 
Polly,  looking  like  a  stage-struck  amateur  at  her 
first  appearance  before  the  public. 

"See  here,  Polly  Brewster !  Don't  you  go  back 
on  me!  I  wouldn't  have  Bob  watching  us  meet 
those  boys  and  then  laughing  at  us  afterwards, 
for  anything  in  the  world !  We'll  stay  right  here 
and  get  acquainted  before  we  go  to  the  house  to 
be  teased  and  made  to  feel  uncomfortable,"  de- 
clared Eleanor,  who  knew  her  sister  only  too 
well. 

"I  guess  Eleanor's  right,  Polly;  it  struck  me  that 
that  nice  young  boy  was  rather  shy  with  strangers» 
so  you  will  be  doing  him  a  great  favor  if  you  get 
acquainted  here  and  then  bring  him  to  the  house 


THE  GIRLS  ENTERTAIN  GUESTS     105 

to  meet  the  rest  of  us,"  admitted  Anne,  then  she 
ran  down  the  steep  sides  of  the  rocks. 

Now  and  then  the  waiting  girls  had  glimpses 
of  the  two  riders  as  they  rode  along  the  winding 
trail  past  the  Cliffs.  And  Jim  Latimer  also 
caught  a  glimpse  of  the  girls  as  he  happened  to 
pause,  to  point  out  the  Rainbow  rocks  to  his 
friend.  Instantly  he  pulled  off  his  wide  sombrero 
and  waved  it  gayly  at  his  young  hostesses.  Then 
both  boys  spurred  their  horses  eagerly  onward. 

Eleanor  and  Jim  felt  perfectly  at  ease  as  they 
met  and  shook  hands,  but  it  was  evident  that  Polly 
and  Kenneth  Evans  were  not  accustomed  to  social 
ways  or  behavior,  for  both  acted  rather  awkward 
at  this  meeting.  However,  Eleanor  generally 
fitted  into  any  breach,  and  now  she  unconsciously 
steered  the  would-be  friendly  craft  of  the  four 
past  the  reefs  of  self-consciousness  into  the  haven 
of  youthful  reciprocity. 

"We  thought  you  were  never  coming — it's  past 
one  o'clock  you  know,  and  we  looked  for  you  at 
eleven,"  said  she,  catching  Jim  by  the  sleeve  and 
leading  the  way  to  the  road  where  the  two  horses 
were  waiting. 

"We  expected  to  be  here  at  half-past  ten,  or 
eleven  at  the  latest,  but  it  is  a  long  story  to  tell, 
and  we  ought  to  explain  to  your  mother  at  the 


io6  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

same  time,"  replied  Jim,  throwing  the  bridle  over 
his  arm  and  starting  to  walk  beside  Eleanor. 

Naturally,  Kenneth  and  Polly  followed,  but 
Eleanor  turned  around  every  other  moment  to  in- 
clude them  in  her  vivacious  conversation  about 
the  land-slide  and  the  fears  that  Choko's  Find 
was  lost. 

"Oh,  but  say!  What  a  ripping  chance  we 
missed,  Ken,  by  not  being  one  of  the  party  on  the 
Slide,  eh?"  cried  Jim,  enviously. 

"I'd  like  to  be  one  of  the  party  up  there  now. 
Just  fancy  the  opportunities  one  would  have  for 
seeing  how  much  he  knows  about  engineering," 
replied  Kenneth. 

"Maybe  we  can  fix  it  so  mother'll  allow  us  to 
show  you  the  way  up.  I'd  love  to  go  again," 
ventured  Polly,  enthusiastically,  as  she  forgot  her- 
self in  the  absorbing  subject  of  the  gold  mine. 

"Ken  and  I  have  to  be  back  at  camp  to-night! 
That's  the  worst  of  being  hired!"  grumbled  Jim. 

"It's  that,  or  being  fired!"  retorted  Kenneth,, 
laughingly. 

Youth  needs  little  to  laugh  at,  so  the  four  took 
this  little  speech  as  a  cue  to  laugh  loud  and  long. 
It  attracted  Barbara's  attention.  She  had  been 
trying  to  read,  but  now  she  got  up  to  frown  at 
the  gay  young  people  she  saw  climbing  the  road 


THE  GIRLS  ENTERTAIN  GUESTS     107 

to  the  house.  Anne  also  heard  the  laughter  and 
hurriedly  called  to  Mrs.  Brewster:  "They're  al- 
most here — come  right  out." 

So  the  visitors  found  a  pleasant  welcome  await- 
ing them  as  they  reached  the  porch.  Immediately 
after  greeting  the  ladies,  the  boys  apologized  for 
their  lateness.  Jim  then  acted  as  spokesman. 

"We  feared  we  would  not  be  able  to  be  here,  at 
all,  as  the  Boss  of  our  Crew  forbid  any  one  tak- 
ing out  a  horse  to-day.  Jake  has  charge  of  the 
horses,  you  know,  and  he  was  instructed  not  to 
pass  one  mount. 

"Maybe  the  boys  weren't  furious  1  as  we  always 
take  Sundays  to  ride  to  Oak  Creek.  It's  the  only 
off  day  we  get.  But  Carew  said  we  had  a  long 
move  to  make  to-morrow,  and  his  horses  had  to 
be  fresh  for  the  trip. 

"Gee!  I  felt  like  thundering  about  camp,  as 
I  had  looked  forward  to  this  visit  ever  since  Ken 
told  me  about  how  he  met  you  folks,  and  all. 
Now  we  both  were  all  fixed  ready  to  make  an  early 
start  in  the  morning,  and  there  would  be  no 
horses ! 

"Ken  and  I  stole  out  late  last  night  and  tried 
to  bribe  Jake  with  goodies,  then  with  money,  and 
lastly  I  remembered  tobacco  I  I  agreed  to  hand 
over  a  big  bag  of  Cut  Plug  and  a  tin  box  of 


io8  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

cigarettes  if  he  would  loan  us  his  two  wagon- 
horses.  These  he  could  use  as  they  were  not  in- 
cluded in  the  ban  on  the  crew  horses. 

"But  Jake  is  a  wily  fellow  and  wanted  to  see 
our  tobacco  first.  He  knew  that  neither  of  us 
used  it  and  he  doubted  our  having  any!" 

Jim  chuckled  at  this,  and  Ken  smiled  sympa- 
thetically. The  ladies  also  smiled  as  an  interested 
audience  will.  Then  the  narrator  continued : 

"Ken  and  I  knew  where  Jake  kept  the  store 
of  tobacco  that  he  always  sold  to  the  other  sur- 
veyors, so  we  fixed  up  a  little  scheme.  We  left 
more  than  enough  money  to  pay  for  what  we  took 
and  then  hurried  back  to  Jake  with  the  gift  of 
tobacco. 

"I  wish  you  could  have  seen  him  scratch  his 
head  in  bewilderment  when  he  saw  us  hand  over 
the  star  brand  of  tobacco  he  kept  in  stock !  Still 
he  refused  to  say  whether  we  could  start  early 
in  the  morning,  and  then  I  got  good  and  mad. 
If  it  wasn't  for  Ken,  here,  kicking  me  in  the  ribs, 
I'd  have  spilled  the  beans!" 

Every  one  laughed  at  Jim's  slangy  way  of  de- 
scribing his  interview  with  Jake,  but  he  was  full 
of  his  subject  and  would  not  be  laughed  out  of 
countenance. 

"Ken  and  I  were  getting  ready  to  go  to  sleep, 


THE  GIRLS  ENTERTAIN  GUESTS     109 

when  Jake  crept  under  our  tent  flap  and  pulled 
my  foot  to  attract  attention. 

"There  were  three  other  surveyors  in  our  tent, 
and  Jake  did  not  wish  them  to  hear  what  was  go- 
ing on.  The  lights  were  out,  so  we  were  not  seen 
as  we  slid  under  the  canvas  and  joined  the  driver 
over  by  the  trees  where  no  one  could  hear  us 
whisper. 

"  'You  fresh  boys !'  was  the  first  thing  Jake  said. 

"Then  he  laughed  deep  down  in  his  throat,  and 
said;  'Ah  kin  bet  on  you  boys,  ef  Ah  lets  you-all 
have  mah  team  to-morrer, — you-all  shore  will 
come  back  in  time?' 

"I  eagerly  promised  everything,  and  he  added : 
'Ah  sold  a  lot  of  tobakker  to  some  one  Ah  don't 
know,  but  it  doesn't  matter  who  the  smoker  is, 
'cuz  now  Ah  got  mah  money  and  tobakker,  too! 
It's  'cuz  that  feller  is  so  smart  that  Ah  feels  shore 
the  Boss  won't  get  wind  of  mah  hosses  bein'  lent. 
'Course  Ah  hez  a  right  to  use  mah  waggin-team  ef 
Ah  likes,  but  Carew  is  strick  and  might  get  on 
his  high-hoss  ef  he  learned  Ah  sent  two  of  his  men 
on  an  errent.' 

"I  was  so  sure  no  one  would  ever  know  we  rode 
the  horses  if  he  would  only  loan  them  to  us,  that  I 
agreed  to  anything. 

"Then  he  said:     'Wall,  now,  Ah  left  one  of 


no 

the  crew's  tripods  over  at  Bear  Forks  line  to-day 
when  Ford  took  an  observation.  AhVe  got'ta  go 
fer  it  to-morrer — er  find  some  good-natured  feller 
who  will  go  fer  me.  Ah've  got'ta  get  a  heap  of 
work  done,  to-morrer,  and  it  looks  well-nigh  im- 
possible fer  me  to  get  that  tripod !' 

"I  caught  on  at  once,  and  turned  to  Ken  and 
said:  'Why,  Jake,  I  will  get  that  tripod  for  you. 
But  I'd  hate  to  walk  so  far  as  Bear  Forks  line,  all 
alone,  you  know.' 

"That  made  Jake  laugh  softly  and  he  said:  'Ef 
you-all  will  find  that  tripod  fer  me,  Ah'll  lend  you- 
all  the  hosses  fer  the  day.' 

"So  that  is  how  we  got  away  from  camp,  but 
we  have  been  hunting  everywhere  for  that  old 
tripod  and  haven't  seen  a  shadow  of  it.  While 
looking  for  it  along  the  line  that  Ford  surveyed 
this  week,  we  lost  our  way  and  had  to  have  that 
rancher  show  us  the  way  back  to  Bear  Forks  trail. 
That's  why  we  are  so  late." 

"Well,  now  that  you  are  here,  suppose  you 
brush  up  and  get  ready  for  dinner.  I've  had  it 
waiting  this  hour  and  a  half,"  said  Mrs.  Brew- 
ster,  leading  the  way  over  to  the  pump. 

"And  maybe  we  aren't  ready  to  do  justice  to 
your  cooking !  We  haven't  had  a  crumb  since  sup- 
per last  night,  because  we  dared  not  ask  the  cook 


for  sandwiches,  and  we  left  camp  before  break- 
fast-time. Jake  said  we  might  not  be  permitted 
to  hunt  up  his  tripod  for  him  if  any  one  learned 
he  was  giving  us  his  horses  for  the  trip,"  explained 
Kenneth. 

"Oh,  you  poor  boys !  Do  hurry,  then,  and  join 
us  at  table  over  under  the  oak,  yonder!"  exclaimed 
Mrs.  Brewster,  hasting  to  bring  out  towels  and 
brushes  for  her  young  visitors. 

The  dinner  was  a  great  success,  both  from  a 
culinary  and  also  from  the  social  points  of  view. 
While  thoroughly  enjoying  the  home-cooking,  the 
boys  talked  of  their  work  and  adventures  in  the 
mountains.  Jim  had  been  with  the  survey  crew 
all  summer,  but  Kenneth  had  but  just  arrived.  So 
Jim  had  a  store-house  filled  with  recent  thrilling 
experiences  and  escapes. 

Close-up  encounters  with  bears,  rattle-snakes, 
and  land-slides,  were  passed  off  as  mere  trifles  by 
him.  But  the  problems  of  getting  enough  good 
things  to  eat,  now  and  then  a  dance  at  some  school- 
house,  or  finding  a  pretty  girl  one  could  talk  to 
— these  were  awful! 

When  dinner  was  out  of  the  way,  the  four  young 
people  started  to  walk  to  Rainbow  Cliffs,  as 
that  was  the  show-spot  of  all  the  country-side. 
Having  so  many  unique  features  and  winding 


H2  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

walks  made  it  a  delightful  place  for  quiet  little 
chats  or  tete-a-tetes. 

"I  never  saw  anything  like  those  great  masses 
of  color,"  said  Kenneth,  as  they  drew  near  the 
sparkling  walk. 

"I  told  Ken  when  we  rode  past  here  to-day,  that 
Tom  wanted  your  father  to  sell  out  the  cliffs  on  a 
royalty  basis,  but  he  refused  to.  Now  that  Tom 
is  here  again  with  John,  and  the  gold  mine  is 
caved  in  with  that  land-slide,  maybe  he  will  listen, 
eh?"  asked  Jim,  eagerly. 

Polly  shook  her  head.  "I  don't  believe  he  will, 
but  we  can't  find  out  why  he  is  so  stubborn  about 
it." 

"Jim,  I  don't  believe  our  gold  mine  has  caved  in, 
at  all.  It's  only  temporarily  buried,  up  there. 
If  there  is  any  way  it  can  be  located  again,  I'm 
going  to  insist  upon  having  it  worked!"  declared 
Eleanor. 

"Why?  You  don't  need  the  money,"  laughed 
Jim. 

"How  do  you  know  what  I  need!"  retorted 
Eleanor.  "Polly  and  I  need  money  this  Fall,  as 
we  are  going  to  go  away  to  school  together — 
somewhere.  And  she  can't  go  unless  she  has  her 
own  money, 'cause  her  father  won't  consent  to  her 
leaving  home,  but  her  mother  will — so  she  will 


THE  GIRLS  ENTERTAIN  GUESTS     1113 

have  to  have  her  own  money  to  get  away  with, 
see?" 

"No,  I  don't  see  that  that  will  work,"  Kenneth 
interpolated. 

"Why  not?  If  Mr.  Brewster  finds  Polly  is 
going,  anyway,  he  will  soon  enough  give  his  con- 
sent," argued  Eleanor. 

"I  never  said  I  would  go  away  to  school  with 
you,  Nolla,  although  I  should  like  it  better  than 
going  alone.  And  I'm  sure  I  couldn't  think  of 
leaving  home  if  Daddy  objected  to  it,"  said  Polly 
seriously. 

"Oh,  well,  I  know  you  won't,  but  a  lot  of  money 
of  your  very  own  will  help  coax  him  to  our  way  of 
thinking,"  explained  Eleanor. 

"You  seem  to  think  your  mine  will  turn  out 
money  in  time  for  you  to  spend  it  this  Fall,"  ven- 
tured Kenneth,  amusedly. 

"Why,  of  course  it  will,  if  we  can  get  at  it 
through  that  land-slide,"  returned  she. 

"Other  mines  take  from  one  to  ten  years  to  pre- 
pare for  and  operate.  If  you  do  the  thing  right, 
and  have  engineers  plan  for  the  apparatus  to 
work  the  ore,  you  won't  be  spending  that  gold  this 
year,"  added  Jim. 

"No !  Then  what  good  will  it  do  Polly  or  me  ? 
I  have  a  fine  idea  that  I  want  to  perfect  right 


U4  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

away,  and  it  needs  money.  I  haven't  even  told 
Polly  a  word  of  it,  as  I  must  see  how  much  money 
we  get  from  the  mine  before  I  mention  it." 

"But  once  your  mine  begins  to  pay  it  will  keep 
on  paying  for  ever  so  long.  You  can  plan  to 
spend  all  the  money  you  can  possibly  use,  if  the 
mine  has  any  kind  of  vein  in  it,"  said  Kenneth, 
soothingly. 

"I  believe  in  taking  a  'bird  in  the  hand  in- 
stead of  the  one  in  the  bush,'  and  here  is  a  fortune 
right  on  this  wall!"  said  Jim,  pointing  at  the 
jeweled  cliffs. 

He  picked  up  a  handful  of  the  colored  lava- 
stones  and  showed  them  to  Kenneth.  "Do  you 
know,  Ken,  that  I  wouldn't  be  one  bit  surprised 
but  what  that  new  patent  your  father  got  out  for 
cutting  rare  gems  would  work  on  these  to  some 
good." 

"I  never  thought  of  that!  Maybe  it  would. 
If  only  he  could  come  here  to  investigate  and  try 
his  machine  on  the  jewels." 

"Why  not  send  him  a  small  box-full  of  the 
stones  and  let  him  experiment  on  them  with  the 
model  he  has  in  father's  office?"  asked  Jim, 
eagerly. 

"If  Polly  will  give  us  some — I  will  send  them 


THE  GIRLS  ENTERTAIN  GUESTS     115 

on  with  a  letter  of  explanation,"  returned  Ken- 
neth. 

"Of  course  I  Take  all  you  want.  Every  one 
is  welcome  to  them,"  said  Polly,  breaking  off  a 
cluster  of  fresh  stones  from  the  wall. 

"What  are  you  talking  about,  Jim?  I  heard 
Bob  say  something  about  a  new  patented  machine 
that  would  make  millions  out  of  these  Cliffs,  but 
what  do  you  mean?"  asked  Eleanor. 

"I  guess  we  were  both  speaking  of  the  same 
idea,"  replied  Jim.  "You  see,  my  father  is  financ- 
ing the  wonderful  patent  Ken's  father  invented. 
Dr.  Evans  is  a  great  inventor,  and  every  once  in 
a  while  he  has  a  big  idea.  That  was  how  he 
planned  the  vacuum  sweepers,  and  the  self-stop 
on  the  victrolas.  He  has  lots  of  unusual  patents 
granted  him,  and  now  he  has  this  idea  patented. 

"He  can  cut  a  stone  so  that  it  surpasses  any 
hand-cut  jewel  for  facets  and  beauty,  by  merely 
dropping  the  material  into  the  feeder  on  the 
machine  and  letting  it  cut  out  the  jewel  in  a  few 
moments.  The  size  of  stone  wanted  can  be  regu- 
lated by  a  screw.  And  the  small  bits  of  refuse 
left  after  making  large  jewels,  can  be  cut  into 
sparkling  chips. 

"My  father  and  Uncle  George  incorporated  the 


n6  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

company  that  is  financing  this  cutting  machine. 
Now  they  can  try  out  this  lava  and  see  if  it  is 
hard  enough  to  cut  brilliantly." 

"Wouldn't  it  be  lovely  to  have  Ken's  father  use 
these  lava  jewels  in  his  company,  and  let  Nolla  and 
me  have  the  royalty  to  send  us  to  school?"  ven- 
tured Polly,  wistfully,  looking  at  the  distant  peak 
where  her  gold  mine  seemed  lost  for  the  present. 

Jim  and  his  friend  were  selecting  the  finest 
specimen  of  the  lava  as  Polly  spoke,  so  they  made 
no  reply.  Her  eyes  traveled  along  the  Top 
Notch  Trail  and  finally  came  back  to  the  Cliffs  at 
home.  She  watched  the  boys  gather  the  stones 
and  suddenly  remembered  Kenneth's  likeness  to 
Montresor. 

"Oh,  Kenneth!  I  'most  forgot  to  ask  you 
something!"  cried  she. 

Ken  stood  up  and  looked  at  her  with  a  broad 
smile.  As  he  waited  thus,  she  was  struck  by  the 
singular  look  that  was  so  like  her  old  friend's. 

"That  gold  mine  we  told  you  boys  about,  was 
first  found  and  staked  by  a  white-haired  man  who 
called  himself  Montresor.  He  lost  it  again  in 
just  the  same  way  as  we  did — a  land-slide  buried  it 
and  his  stakes,  and  no  one  could  locate  it  again. 

"Then  he  died  and  left  his  claim  to  me.  I 
always  bettered  he  had  one,  but  every  one  else 


laughed  at  him  and  said  he  was  crazy.  Father 
was  good  to  him  after  the  mine  was  lost,  and  took 
his  part  when  folks  jeered.  When  he  died,  Daddy 
paid  for  the  funeral  and  has  the  certificate  where 
he  is  buried.  But  we  never  learned  who  he  was, 
except  the  fact  that  he  came  from  the  East,  al- 
though we  advertised  a  lot. 

"Just  the  day  you  arrived  in  Oak  Creek,  Mr. 
Simms,  our  lawyer,  read  a  letter  which  Old  Man 
Montresor  left.  It  was  written  to  a  wife  and 
child,  but  there  was  no  name  or  address  on  it. 
Then  I  heard  how  father  spent  lots  of  money  try- 
ing to  identify  the  dear  old  man  and  trace  his 
relatives  but  to  no  account. 

"When  we  first  saw  you,  we-all  were  impressed 
with  your  resemblance  to  our  old  friend.  So  now 
I  want  to  ask  you  if  there  ever  was  any  one  in  your 
family  who  went  to  the  Klondike  and  was  re- 
ported lost  there?" 

"Wh-y,  ye-es,  there  is  some  such  story  in  our 
family,  but  I  do  not  know  the  exact  truth  about  it. 
And  we  seldom  discussed  it  as  mother  always  felt 
badly  afterwards. 

"As  far  as  I  can  understand  it,  my  mother's 
only  brother  Peter  was  a  clever  mining  engineer  in 
the  East,  but  he  was  too  ambitious  to  be  contented 
with  his  income.  Mother  says  it  was  his  wife  who 


u8  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

wanted  to  spend  money  like  water,  who  finally 
urged  him  to  try  his  luck  in  Alaska — and  he  left 
home  to  seek  wealth  in  the  Klondike. 

"He  placed  all  the  money  he  had  in  the  bank 
for  his  family,  and  left  Aunt  Ada  and  my  Cousin 
Gail  with  sufficient  to  live  on  if  they  were  econom- 
ical. But  my  Aunt  was  not  content  with  a  simple 
home  and  a  meager  income,  and  thought  to  add 
to  her  comfort  and  wealth  by  starting  a  fine  board- 
ing-house. 

"She  knew  nothing  about  the  business,  however, 
and  soon  lost  all  the  money  she  had  been  left 
with  and  then  she  ran  in  debt.  When  her  in- 
vestment was  sold  out,  she  came  to  us  for  help. 
She  and  Cousin  Gail  lived  with  us  for  two  years; 
then  Aunt  Ada  had  pneumonia  and  died.  She 
begged  us  to  adopt  Gail  as  she  had  never  heard 
from  Uncle  after  he  wrote  to  her  to  send  him 
money  to  get  out  of  Nome.  But  she  had  none,  so 
she  never  told  mother  about  this  letter ;  we  would 
have  helped  poor  Uncle. 

"As  it  was  a  year  since  he  wrote  that  letter,  and 
he  was  in  wretched  health  while  in  the  far  North, 
mother  felt  sure  that  he  had  succumbed  to  the  cold 
and  his  discouragement.  Aunt  Ada  left  a  note 
in  which  she  said  that  Gail  and  I  were  to  share 


THE  GIRLS  ENTERTAIN  GUESTS     119 

like  brother  and  sister  in  anything  Uncle  Peter 
left  us. 

"But  mother  always  laughed  at  the  idea  that 
there  would  be  any  wealth  coming  to  us  from  the 
Klondike.  She  said  the  only  precious  legacy  we 
could  claim  in  the  gold-fields  of  Alaska  was  the 
untiring  energy  and  earnestness  Uncle  was  sure 
to  use  wherever  he  went  or  whatever  he  did.  But 
she  wrote  to  the  postmaster  at  Nome  and  received 
word  that  her  brother  was  dead. 

"Gail  was  always  delicate,  and  a  year  after  her 
mother  died,  she,  too,  took  sick  and  was  gone  in  a 
week's  time.  So  mother  tried  to  forget  her  dear 
brother  after  these  sad  experiences,  and  it  is  only 
at  rare  intervals  that  any  one  mentions  his  name 
to  her." 

When  Kenneth  finished  telling  his  story,  Polly 
asked  eagerly:  "But  you  haven't  told  us  your 
uncle's  name — nor  your  mother's  maiden  name. 
Was  it  Montresor?" 

"Oh  no!  Just  a  plain  New  England  name — 
mother  is  called  Priscilla  Amesbury,  and  my  uncle 
was  Peter  Amesbury.  I  never  heard  of  a  Montre- 
sor in  our  family,  either.  But  that  doesn't  say 
the  old  gentleman  couldn't  have  chosen  an  assumed 
name,  you  know." 


120  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

Eleanor  and  Polly  were  plainly  disappointed 
that  the  names  of  the  Klondike  uncle  and  the  hero 
of  Polly's  life,  were  not  the  same.  Jim  laughed 
when  he  saw  the  girls'  evident  regret. 

"Any  one  would  think  you  two  girls  were  anxi- 
ous to  share  your  gold-mine  with  the  heir  of  old 
Montresor.  Now  what  is  there  to  hinder  rne 
from  claiming  the  old  man  as  my  uncle  and  telling 
you  he  is  a  twin-brother  of  my  father's?  That 
will  make  me  the  heir  to  that  mine." 

"We  wouldn't  believe  you,  because  you  haven't 
one  bit  of  resemblance  to  this  friend  Polly  knew, 
but  Kenneth  has.  That  is  why  it  may  turn  out 
that  Montresor  really  was  his  uncle,"  said  Elea- 
nor. 

As  the  sun  went  down  back  of  Rainbow  Cliffs, 
the  two  boys  regretfully  said  good-by.  Mrs. 
Brewster  planned  for  them  to  come  and  spend  the 
following  Sunday  at  Pebbly  Pit  with  John  and 
Tom  there,  provided  the  crew  was  not  too  far  re- 
moved for  the  trip. 

The  boys  promised  to  send  word  by  mail,  as 
Jake  rode  to  Oak  Creek  two  or  three  times  a  week, 
and  could  mail  a  note  from  them  if  they  were  to 
be  within  riding  distance. 

"We  might  even  find  a  way  to  lose  the  valuable 
transit  and  then  have  to  come  and  hunt  for  it," 


THE  GIRLS  ENTERTAIN  GUESTS     121; 

laughed  Kenneth,  as  they  got  into  their  saddles 
for  the  return  ride. 

"But  you  didn't  find  the  tripod!  What  will 
Jake  say?"  asked  Polly,  anxiously. 

"We'll  let  you  know  next  Sunday,"  laughed  both 
the  boys. 

That  night  when  Jake  smuggled  his  two  horses 
back  to  the  corral  with  the  crew's  mounts,  he 
turned  to  the  boys  and  said : 

"Whar  did  you-all  leave  it?" 

"Leave  what?"  asked  Jim,  wonderingly. 

"Why,  mah  tripod,  yuh  coyote !"  grinned  Jake, 
winking  at  Kenneth. 

"Oh,  yes !  Well,  Jake,  I  had  to  leave  it  at  Peb- 
bly Pit  because  it  was  so  heavy,  but  I'll  go  back 
for  it  next  Sunday!" 

"Nah,  yuh  won't,  eider — some  one  else  brought 
in  th'  tripod  and  ha'r  it  'tis!"  With  that  Jake 
displayed  the  article  wanted. 

"Who  found  it?  No  one  could  take  a  horse," 
exclaimed  Jim,  perplexed. 

Then  Jake  leaned  over  and  whispered  in  his 
ear:  "The  Boss  hisself!  He  rode  to  Yaller 
Jacket  to  spend  Sunda'  with  his  wife,  yuh  know, 
an'  what  shoul'  he  do  but  come  acrost  the  tripod 
whar  Ah  left  it  fer  you  boys  to  pkk  up !  Mebbe 
Ah  didn't  get  hail  on  Pagoda !" 


CHAPTER  VII 

SEVERAL  MOMENTOUS  LETTERS 

MONDAY  and  Tuesday  passed  very  slowly  to  the 
anxious  girls,  and  on  Wednesday  they  began  look- 
ing for  the  return  of  their  scouting  party.  Polly 
figured  that  three  days  would  prove  ample  time 
in  which  to  investigate  the  conditions  and  de- 
termine whether  or  not  the  mine  could  be  worked 
— providing  it  was  found  again.  But  in  such  a 
dreadful  wilderness  of  torn-up  trees,  and  washed 
out  earth,  where  mile  after  mile  of  mountain-land 
had  changed  its  appearance,  who  could  hope  to 
locate  a  tiny  square  of  ground  that  had  been  staked 
as  the  wonderful  mine?  And  with  giant  trees 
uprooted  and  tossed  along  the  current  of  the  land- 
slide, how  could  any  one  expect  the  insignificant 
wooden  stakes  to  remain  to  mark  the  place? 

Then  Wednesday  also  passed  without  a  sign 
of  the  returning  engineers ;  so  on  Thursday,  Mrs. 
Brewstcr  told  the  girls  they  would  have  to  drive 

122 


SEVERAL  MOMENTOUS  LETTERS     123 

into  Oak  Creek  for  supplies  and  the  weekly  mail. 

This  would  be  a  break  in  the  dull  routine  of 
waiting  impatiently  for  news  from  the  Peak,  and 
all  four  of  the  girls  willingly  complied  with  the 
order.  Two  strong  horses  were  hitched  to  the 
ranch-wagon,  and  the  gay  party  drove  away,  leav- 
ing Mrs.  Brewster  waving  her  hand  as  they  rum- 
bled down  the  road  past  the  Cliffs. 

The  colored  stones  reminded  Polly  of  Kenneth's 
story,  and  she  turned  to  Eleanor  and  said:  "I 
wonder  if  he  wrote  home  to  ask  his  mother  about 
her  brother?" 

"Even  if  he  did  it  will  be  fully  a  fortnight 
before  he  can  have  an  answer.  But  we  ought  to 
get  a  letter  to-day,  telling  us  whether  the  boys  are 
coming  over  Sunday,  or  not,"  replied  Eleanor. 

"Yes,  I  know;  I  thought  we'd  stop  at  the  post 
office  first  of  all,"  answered  Polly. 

The  girls  enjoyed  the  wonderful  drive  along 
the  trail  that  ran  to  Oak  Creek,  and  having 
reached  their  destination,  left  the  team  tied  to  the 
post  in  front  of  Mr.  Simms'  office,  for  they  pur- 
posed having  a  good  time. 

Anne  and  Barbara  went  to  the  store  where  they 
could  buy  candy,  while  Polly  and  Eleanor  ran  to 
the  post  office.  To  their  surprised  delight,  they 
found  Kenneth  Evans  there.  He  was  reading  a 


124  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

telegram  and  did  not  see  the  girls  until  he  had 
finished. 

"Oh — hullo!  I  never  expected  to  see  you 
here,"  exclaimed  he,  seemingly  too  excited  to  re- 
member that  he  had  not  met  them  since  Sunday. 

"I  wired  mother  last  Monday — sent  it  in  by 
Jake,  you  know.  And  told  her  to  reply  so  I  could 
get  her  answer  today.  The  Boss  let  me  off  be- 
cause I  finished  my  work  on  the  old  line  yester- 
day. So  I  came  to  town  myself  for  the  message." 

Kenneth  acted  so  elated  that  Polly  and  Eleanor 
wondered  what  news  he  had  received  to  make  his 
eyes  sparkle  like  stars  and  his  face  to  flush  in  a 
way  that  made  him  positively  handsome. 

"Isn't  it  great,  though?  And  just  think,  if  it 
hadn't  been  for  you  girls,  I  never  would  have 
known  it!" 

"Known  what?  What  have  we  done  that  is 
so  great?"  asked  Eleanor,  laughingly. 

"Why,  the  mine,  don't  you  know!" 

"What  about  it?"  cried  both  girls  at  once, 
thinking  that  news  of  some  moment  from  the 
engineers  had  reached  Oak  Creek  before  they  ar- 
rived there. 

"Why,  the  mine — you  know,  my  uncle's  mine!" 

"Your  uncle's!"  again  the  girls  gasped  in  aston- 
ishment. 


SEVERAL  MOMENTOUS  LETTERS     125 

"Of  course — didn't  Polly  tell  me  all  about  her 
old  friend  Montresor?  Here,  read  my  mother's 
night  letter  to  me."  And  Kenneth  placed  the  yel- 
low sheet  in  Eleanor's  hand. 

She  read  aloud  to  anxious  Polly:  "One  branch 
of  family  has  a  Montresor — two  generations  back 
the  name  was  used  as  surname.  Brother  was 
christened  Peter  Miles  Montresor  Amesbury. 
Disliked  name  Montresor,  dropped  it  when  young. 
Every  one  forgot  about  it.  Am  sending  letter 
with  photograph  of  Peter.  Show  Polly.  Wire 
results.  Father  may  come  west.  Love,  Mother." 

"Oh,  oh !  how  wonderful !"  cried  Polly,  catching 
Kenneth's  hands  delightedly. 

"I'm  glad,  too,  Ken,  but  I  shall  have  to  con- 
test any  of  your  claims  to  my  mine,"  laughed 
Eleanor. 

"Your  father  ought  to  be  told  about  the  land- 
slide. Maybe  he  is  coming  west  to  look  over  the 
claim,  but  he  won't  be  able  to  see  anything,"  re- 
marked Polly. 

"No,  I  think  Dad  plans  to  come  west  to  look 
at  your  Cliffs.  I  told  him  in  my  telegram  just 
what  they  were,  and  sent  on  the  box  of  jewels. 
When  he  gets  them  he  will  try  out  his  invention 
and  if  it  cuts  them  properly,  then  he  may  come 
here  to  see  your  family." 


126  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

"Oh!  You  didn't  waste  any  time  attending  to 
things,  did  you?"  said  Eleanor,  with  keen  amuse- 
ment at  Kenneth's  business  methods. 

"No,  I  never  waste  time  on  anything  that's 
worth  while.  And,  by  the  way,  Jim  and  I  are 
coming  over  to  Pebbly  Pit  again  on  Sunday — 
your  mother  invited  us,  you  know." 

Both  girls  laughed,  and  they  caught  the  youth 
up.  "Ah,  you  must  think  Pebbly  Pit  is  worth 
while,  then?" 

"Why,  I  do !  You  don't  suppose  I'd  ride  'way 
over  there  if  I  was  bored,  do  you?"  replied  Ken- 
neth, earnestly. 

Eleanor  laughed  this  time,  but  Polly  felt  he  was 
in  too  serious  a  mood  for  laughter.  So  she  said : 
"I'm  glad  you  liked  us.  We'll  tell  mother  you 
are  coming  again.  That  is  one  reason  we  drove 
to  Oak  Creek — to  get  the  letter." 

"I'm  afraid  it  will  be  our  only  chance  to  see  you- 
all  again,  as  our  crew  moves  from  Brushy  Creek  to 
Silver  Creek,  and  after  that  we  go  to  Buffalo  Park. 
The  Boss  says  we  will  have  about  three  weeks' 
work  there,  and  then  go  across  the  desert  to  work 
along  the  Lincoln  Highway,  until  we  reach  the 
other  lines,  completed  last  year  by  Carew's  men. 

"He  doesn't  know  whether  we  shall  be  dis- 
missed then,  or  sent  on  to  tie  up  a  few  other  little 


SEVERAL  MOMENTOUS  LETTERS     127 

jobs  before  the  summer  ends.  However,  it  looks 
as  if  Jim  and  I  will  be  too  far  away  to  ride  over 
for  the  day  then.  It  will  take  us  a  day  and  night 
to  cross  the  desert  and  over  several  mountain 
peaks  to  reach  you." 

Eleanor  listened  delightedly  to  this  innocent 
youth,  and  as  he  concluded  she  squealed  with 
amusement:  "Oh,  don't  you  love  it!" 

"Love  what?"  asked  Kenneth,  never  having 
heard  this  extravagant  expression  so  favored  by 
city  misses. 

"Love  you,  of  course !"  retorted  Eleanor,  laugh- 
ing. 

Polly  frowned  at  this  admission,  and  Kenneth 
blushed,  for  he  had  never  before  been  told  so. 
publicly  that  a  pretty  girl  loved  him!  Eleanor 
doubled  over  laughing,  and  gasped:  "Oh,  you 
two  adorable  babes!" 

Further  conversation  was  made  impossible  now, 
by  Barbara  and  Anne  coming  in.  They  im- 
mediately joined  the  three  young  people,  and  Anne 
asked:  "Did  you  get  the  mail,  Nolla?" 

"No,  we  never  thought  of  it.  Ken  has  such  an 
exciting  telegram  that  we  forgot  everything  else." 

Anne  waited  to  hear  no  more,  but  went  to  the 
window  and  inquired  for  her  mail  and  for  that  of 
the  family  at  Pebbly  Fit.  A  bulky  package  was 


128  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

handed  out,  and  caused  Polly  to  exclaim  at  its 
size. 

"Why,  I  never  knew  so  many  letters  to  come 
at  one  time." 

"That's  because  no  one's  been  here  to  get  it 
for  more  than  a  week,"  returned  Anne. 

Barbara  had  not  forgotten  the  yellow  sheet  in 
Kenneth's  hand,  however,  and  now  asked  what 
the  news  was  that  had  so  thrilled  the  girls. 

She  was  given  the  telegram  to  read,  and  having 
mastered  the  contents  she  looked  daggers  at  poor 
Kenneth;  "I  suppose  you  will  expect  my  sister  to 
share  her  mine  with  you,  now." 

Eleanor  instantly  interpolated:  "Your  sister 
wouldn't  think  of  keeping  a  mine  that  belongs  to 
some  one  else.  I'm  thankful  we  had  the  use  of  it 
that  night  when  the  panther  and  bear  wanted  to 
get  at  us.  And  again  the  day  of  the  avalanche  1 
I'm  much  obliged  to  Ken  for  his  cave  hotel!" 

Barbara  sneered  unpleasantly  and  walked  away. 
Kenneth  said  nothing,  but  when  she  had  gone  he 
turned  to  the  girls  and  said:  "We  were  thinking 
more  of  knowing  for  a  certainty  whether  Uncle 
Peter  was  still  alive,  or  whether  your  Montresor 
is  my  mother's  brother.  I  almost  forgot  there 
was  gold  in  that  mine." 

The  girls  assured  him  that  that  was  exactly 


SEVERAL  MOMENTOUS  LETTERS     129 

what  they  believed  he  was  anxious  to  know,  and 
that  the  gold  was  the  least  of  all  things  to  be 
considered. 

Having  spent  two  hours  in  the  Moving  Pic- 
ture Hall,  and  completing  all  the  shopping,  the 
girls  started  back  to  Pebbly  Pit.  Kenneth  Evans 
had  said  good-by  and  gone  on  his  way,  so  there 
was  now  no  side  interest  for  Polly  and  Eleanor 
as  they  drove  the  obedient  horses  homeward. 

Barbara  and  Anne  were  reading  their  letters, 
and  the  two  younger  girls  on  the  front  seat  whis- 
pered confidences  to  each  other.  Anne  suddenly 
exclaimed,  as  she  finished  reading  a  type-written 
letter : 

"Well,  of  all  things!  How  did  they  hear  of 
me?" 

Eleanor  half  turned  around  and  asked: 
"What's  the  matter?" 

"Mother  inclosed  a  letter  that  came  from  New 
York.  She  thought  it  might  be  important,  so  she 
slipped  it  inside  the  one  she  was  just  going  to 
mail  to  me,"  murmured  Anne,  vaguely,  studying 
the  dense  forest  as  they  drove  past. 

"Well,  that's  nothing  to  wonder  about,"  said 
Eleanor. 

Anne  glanced  at  the  letter  again:  "No,  but 
the  contents  is." 


i3o  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

"Maybe  it's  one  of  those  proposals  of  marriage 
— you  know;  the  kind  where  a  lonely  bachelor, 
rich,  well-bred,  perfect  in  every  respect  ( except  his 
bald  head,  glass  eye,  toothless  gums,  and  palsy) 
wishes  acquaintance  with  sweet  young  miss — ob- 
ject matrimony!"  Eleanor  said,  jokingly. 

"Eleanor  Maynard!  How  very  unladylike 
of  you  I"  cried  her  sister,  shocked  at  her  levity. 

"I'm  only  saying  what  you  can  read  in  the 
paper  any  day,"  argued  Eleanor,  still  laughing 
at  her  joke. 

"This  is  a  proposal,  but  not  that  kind.  It 
comes  from  a  well-known  gentleman  in  New  York 
City,"  said  Anne. 

Polly  was  so  astonished  that  she  pulled  in  the 
horses  and  suddenly  halted  them  without  being 
aware  of  it.  Eleanor  and  she  turned  square 
about  and  gazed  at  Anne  questioningly.  Bar- 
bara couldn't  say  anything  as  she  was  at  sea  for 
words. 

"For  goodness'  sake !"  exclaimed  Eleanor,  at 
last. 

"Wh-y — I  wanted  to  live  with  you  in  Denver 
this  winter!"  complained  Polly.  Then  remem- 
bering John  and  his  evident  preference  for  Anne, 
she  added  severely :  "Does  John  know  about  this 
man?" 


SEVERAL  MOMENTOUS  LETTERS     131 

Anne  laughed  gayly.  "No,  and  that  is  the 
only  thing  that  makes  me  feel  unhappy.  I'd  ac- 
cept at  once,  if  New  York  wasn't  so  far  away,  or 
if  I  had  never  met  John." 

Although  Anne  spoke  in  a  jocular  tone  when 
mentioning  John,  she  blushed  most  bewitchingly 
at  her  acknowledgment. 

Eleanor  had  been  keenly  studying  Anne's  face, 
and  now  she  exclaimed:  "Ha!  you  didn't  tell 
us  what  sort  of  a  proposal !  It  may  be  a  mason 
who  wants  to  hire  you  to  carry  a  hod  up  the  lad- 
ders." 

As  the  very  idea  was  so  ridiculous,  every  one 
laughed,  and  that  broke  the  tension.  Then  Anne 
admitted :  "I  felt  like  squaring  myself  with  you, 
Nolla,  for  your  hint  that  I  was  answering  ads. 
in  the  Matrimonial  Mirror." 

"Well,  then,  is  it  for  a  hod-carrier?"  insisted 
the  irrepressible  Eleanor. 

"Almost  as  good;  it  is  for  a  teacher  to  carry 
learning  up  into  young  ladies'  brains  at  a  fash- 
ionable seminary  in  New  York." 

"What?  never!"  declared  Barbara. 

"Of  course — why  not?"  replied  Anne. 

Eleanor  and  Polly  were  silent,  but  they  thought 
a  lot.  But  Barbara  said:  "Because  you  can 
never  fill  a  position  in  a  fashionable  young  ladies' 


132  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

school   in   New   York.     You    know   nothing   of 
social  life." 

"Bob,  I'll  have  Polly  dump  you  from  the  wagon 
if  you  can't  be  half-way  decent  to  us.  Ever  since 
Polly  and  I  discovered  Old  Man  Montresor's 
gold  mine,  you've  been  as  mean  as  a  bear  with  a 
sore  head.  Now  etop  it,  or  I'll — I'll  do  some- 
thing awful  to  you !" 

Eleanor  was  angry!  And  she  looked  daggers 
at  her  sister  as  she  spoke,  but  she  knew  there 
was  nothing  she  could  do  but  patiently  allow  Bar- 
bara to  say  unkind  words  to  others,  as  was  her 
habit. 

Polly  now  spoke.  "Anne,  is  there  anything 
that  you'd  rather  do  than  go  East  to  teach 
school?" 

Anne  caught  her  meaning  and  mentally  thanked 
her,  but  audibly  she  said:  "Not  just  yet,  Polly. 
You  see,  my  brother  Paul  has  two  years  still  to 
put  in  at  college,  and  little  mother  has  to  be  cared 
for,  as  well.  This  offer  is  so  tempting  that  I 
could  not  refuse  it  without  considering  everything 
that  concerns  me.  In  two  years'  time,  I  could  not 
only  rejoice  that  Paul  is  through,  but  that  because 
of  my  increased  income,  mother  will  have  some- 
thing laid  by  for  her  use  in  the  future." 

"Well,   then,"   sighed  Polly,   resignedly,    "I'll 


SEVERAL  MOMENTOUS  LETTERS     133 

give  up  my  hopes  of  paradise !  I  did  so  want  to 
go  to  school  in  a  big  city  this  year."  As  she 
urged  the  horses  on  their  way,  the  young  driver 
felt  the  tears  well  up  in  her  eyes,  but  she  refused 
to  brush  them  away. 

Eleanor  saw  and  understood.  She  quietly  took 
her  own  handkerchief  and  dabbed  her  friend's 
wet  eyes.  Then  placed  her  hand  on  her  shoulder. 
Not  a  word  was  spoken. 

"Polly,  dear,  I'm  not  going  to  do  a  thing  until 
after  I  have  pondered  this  step  well.  I  shall 
have  to  write  the  principal  for  added  information, 
and  before  I  hear  again,  I  will  know  whether  it 
is  wise  for  me  to  accept  the  offer  or  not,"  ex- 
claimed Anne. 

The  rest  of  the  drive  was  concluded  in  silence, 
each  girl  having  much  to  think  over.  When  the 
horses  were  turned  over  to  the  man  who  took 
Jeb's  place  in  his  absence,  and  the  girls  were  on 
the  porch,  Mrs.  Brewster  noticed  their  unusual 
quiet. 

"Anything  wrong,  girls?"  asked  she. 

"No — only  Kenneth's  uncle  is  our  Montresor, 
he  thinks,"  said  Eleanor,  rocking  violently  back 
and  forth  in  the  wicker  chair. 

This  so  surprised  Mrs.  Brewster  that  she  be- 
gan a  rapid  cross-examination  until  she  had  all 


i34  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

facts.  However  the  very  telling  about  Kenneth's 
story  enabled  Polly  to  change  her  thoughts  of 
future  trouble,  so  that  she  felt  much  better  over 
the  school  question  before  very  long. 

Anne's  momentous  letter  was  the  next  impor- 
tant topic  of  conversation,  and  Mrs.  Brewster 
listened  to  the  news  with  an  enigmatical  expression, 
on  her  face.  When  Anne  finished  telling  about 
it,  the  elder  woman  spoke. 

"I  thought  perhaps  you  would  be  planning  to 
take  a  course  in  Domestic  Science.  But  going  to 
New  York  to  continue  your  school  teaching  would 
lead  me  to  believe  that  you  propose  making  that 
the  principal  object  of  your  life." 

"But  you  must  remember,  Mrs.  Brewster,  I  am 
not  alone  in  the  world.  I  have  my  mother  and 
younger  brother  to  consider.  If  I  fail  Paul  now, 
he  will  have  to  stop  his  college  education  half- 
way. I  simply  have  to  keep  on  supplying  him 
and  mother  with  means,  until  he  is  through. 
Then  he  can  help  me  in  caring  for  mother,"  ex- 
plained Anne,  diffidently. 

"You  might  marry  a  young  man  who  had  ample 
means  to  take  care  of  both  your  mother  and 
brother,"  suggested  Barbara. 

"Oh,  Bob!  you  know  Paul  would  never  take 
money  that  way,  when  I  had  such  a  dreadful  time 


SEVERAL  MOMENTOUS  LETTERS     135 

in  even  persuading  him  to  let  me  loan  him  his 
educational  expenses  from  my  own  salary!"  ex- 
claimed Anne,  flushing  uncomfortably  when  the 
subject  of  her  marrying  a  wealthy  man  was  men- 
tioned. 

"If  your  brother  knows  you  plan  to  go  to  New 
York  just  to  earn  more  money  for  him,  he  may 
refuse  to  take  any  aid  from  you,"  ventured  Mrs. 
Brewster. 

"That  is  my  only  concern  just  now.  Of  course, 
I  shall  take  mother  with  me  to  keep  house  for  us 
both,  but  Paul  must  complete  his  studies  in  Chi- 
cago, so  he  must  believe  there  was  another  reason 
for  my  choosing  New  York  other  than  the  mere 
increased  salary  offered  me." 

"It  seems  a  difficult  thing  for  you  to  do — to 
find  a  plausible  reason  for  going  so  far  East," 
added  Mrs.  Brewster. 

"Now  7  know  a  good  one;"  spoke  up  Eleanor, 
suddenly.  "I  am  crazy  to  spend  a  winter  in  New 
York,  but  Bob  won't  give  up  her  social  season 
at  home,  and  mother  wouldn't  think  of  spending 
the  time  in  New  York  just  to  oblige  me.  As 
Anne  has  always  been  found  to  be  so  helpful  to 
me,  in  everyway,  I  shall  insist  upon  going  to 
New  York  this  Fall  and  choosing  her  as  my  com- 
panion while  there.  Naturally  her  mother  wants 


136  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

to  go,  too,  and  so  we  will  decide  to  keep  house 
in  one  of  those  cute  little  three-room-and-kitch- 
enette  apartments.  Then  Anne  has  so  much  time 
on  her  hands  that  she  decides  to  fill  in  by  going 
to  this  seminary  for  certain  hours.  How's  that 
for  a  plot!" 

uOh,  it's  lovely — all  but  your  being  able  to  go 
East,"  replied  Barbara,  sarcastically. 

The  others  laughed  at  both  plotter  and  objector, 
for  it  sounded  so  visionary.  But  once  Eleanor 
had  the  idea  in  her  mind  she  mulled  it  over  and 
over  until  it  really  appeared  feasible  to  her. 

The  others  talked  of  the  mine,  of  Kenneth's 
father  and  the  invention  for  cutting  jewels,  of 
everything  that  concerned  any  interest  in  their 
lives,  while  Eleanor  sat  and  planned  her  new 
idea. 

"Now  listen  to  me,  folks — I've  got  everything 
ironed  out  smooth  for  Anne's  going.  I  am  ex- 
pected to  remain  in  Denver  all  this  winter  and 
attend  school  there.  Live  with  Anne  and  her 
mother.  These  are  Mother's  orders  to  the  doctor 
— and  he  ordered  them  on  to  Daddy.  I  know  all 
about  it,  because  Barbara  and  Mother  planned  a 
big  campaign  to  try  and  marry  Bob  off  sure  pop 
this  year! — " 


SEVERAL  MOMENTOUS  LETTERS     137 

"Nolla !  I  will  not  sit  here  quietly  and  listen 
to  you  tell  such  dreadful  stones.  You  know  very 
well  that  you  are  too  delicate  to  live  in  Chicago 
where  the  climate  does  not  agree  with  you,"  Bar- 
bara cried. 

"Tut,  tut!  We  are  all  old  friends  here,  Bob, 
and  no  one  will  squeal  on  you  about  family  skele- 
tons. Anne  knows  as  much  about  this  arrange- 
ment as  you  or  I  do;  and  Polly,  or  her  mother, 
are  not  interested  enough  to  repeat  what  I  say," 
giggled  Eleanor;  then  she  continued  her  outlines: 
"Hence,  it  matters  little  whether  the  eager  stu- 
dent (that's  me)  lives  in  Denver,  New  York,  or 
Timbuctoo,  as  long  as  she  is  in  'safe  hands'  and 
out  of  society's  way. 

"Now  Anne  Stewart  and  her  mother  have  ab- 
solutely 'safe  hands'  for  such  as  me;  so  there  will 
be  little  argument  and  no  difficulties  in  convincing 
mother  or  Bob  to  have  the  doctor  say  that  I  must 
go  East  with  Anne.  Convincing  Dad  of  this  need, 
will  be  the  only  obstacle.  But  I  shall  play  upon 
the  fact  that  he  can  visit  me  quite  often  in  New 
York,  whereas  he  never  comes  West  on  business. 
He  can  fly  across  country  from  Chicago  on  the 
Twentieth  Century  and  be  in  New  York  in  the 
morning. 


138  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

"Yes,  Anne,  considering  all  things,  I  believe 
it  will  be  New  York  for  my  schooling  this  Winter, 
instead  of  Denver." 

Eleanor  wagged  her  head  wisely  as  she  finished 
speaking,  and  her  hearers  began  to  wonder  if  she 
really  meant  what  she  said.  Anne  rather  liked 
the  suggestion  of  having  Eleanor  go  East  with 
her,  and  Polly  sat  mute,  wishing  some  one  would 
persuade  her  mother  that  it  was  the  only  thing 
to  do  for  her,  too. 

Sary  came  in  at  this  point  to  say  that  supper 
had  been  waiting  so  long,  that  it  was  all  sizzled 
up  in  the  pan. 

"My  goodness!  I  forgot  we  hadn't  had  sup- 
per!" laughed  Eleanor,  jumping  up  and  catch- 
ing Polly  by  the  arm  to  whirl  her  away. 

Once  out  of  hearing,  she  whispered  quickly: 
"Don't  say  a  word  to  any  one  about  this  New 
York  plan  of  mine — if  I  go,  you  go,  too ;  for  we 
are  a  second  'Ruth  and  Naomi'  you  know!" 

Polly  smiled,  but  she  knew  her  friend's  sug- 
gestion for  her  going,  too,  would  have  no  back- 
ing from  any  one  at  her  home. 

Saturday  dawned  and  every  one  at  Pebbly  Pit 
was  on  the  lookout  for  the  adventurers,  as  they 
surely  would  not  remain  on  the  mountain  over 
another  Sunday!  But  it  was  late  m  the  after- 


SEVERAL  MOMENTOUS  LETTERS     139 

noon  when  the  clip-clop  of  horses'  hoofs  rang  out 
over  the  crater  of  the  ranch.  Then  the  riders 
were  seen  passing  the  Cliffs,  and  soon  they  were 
at  the  door. 

Such  a  babble  of  voices  and  questions  asked, 
would  have  deafened  any  one  not  concerned  in 
the  meeting.  But  every  one,  even  Sary,  had  a 
heart  interest  In  the  returned  scouts,  and  no  one 
took  the  trouble  to  bottle  up  their  rejoicing. 

Several  farm-hands  were  present,  so  the  horses 
were  sent  off  to  the  barn  and  Jeb  was  allowed 
a  rest  period.  Of  course,  the  men  were  hungry, 
and  every  one  turned  to  the  well-laden  table. 

While  eating  an  early  supper,  John  and  Tom 
were  called  upon  to  give  expert  opinions  about 
"Choko's  Find"  Mine. 

"As  you  must  know,  Tom  and  I  did  the  job  up 
well  while  we  were  up  there.  That  is  why  we  re- 
mained so  long.  We've  got  the  plan  worked  out 
and  we  also  took  photographs  of  the  entire  sur- 
roundings so  that  investors  can  see  exactly  what 
the  difficulties  will  be,"  explained  John. 

"Oh,  then  we  haven't  lost  it!"  cried  Polly  and 
Eleanor  together. 

"You  couldn't  lose  it  unless  Old  Grizzly  split 
the  whole  side  of  the  mountain  open  and  washed 
the  gold  down  into  the  bottom.  But  the  land- 


i4o  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

slide  makes  the  mining  more  difficult  in  the  begin- 
ning; once  things  are  going,  it  will  make  no  dif- 
ference, excepting  that  there  is  always  the  danger 
of  fresh  avalanches  wreaking  the  same  havoc  this 
one  has  done,"  said  Tom  Latimer. 

"Well,  I  always  had  a  theory  that  I  believe 
will  prove  to  divert  a  great  deal  of  slide  that 
does  the  damage,  in  a  case  like  this  one.  And 
since  looking  around  up  on  Top  Notch,  I'm  sure 
my  idea  will  work,"  ventured  John. 

"All  I  can  say  to  that  is,  if  you  have  such  a 
theory  it  will  prove  more  valuable  than  Kenneth 
Evans*  father's  patent  device  for  cutting  lava 
jewels  from  Rainbow  Cliffs !"  laughed  Eleanor. 

"What's  that?"  demanded  John,  while  Tom 
Latimer  wondered  how  this  Chicago  girl  ever 
had  heard  of  Dr.  Evans'  machine  that  his  father 
was  financially  interested  in. 

Then  Polly  and  Eleanor  had  the  "speaker's 
chair"  and  they  told  all  about  Kenneth,  his  father's 
patents,  and  Old  Man  Montresor's  relationship 
to  him. 

"Why  then,  if  this  lad  is  the  direct  heir  to 
Montresor,  he  must  inherit  the  mine!"  declared 
John. 

"Not  according  to  law,  because  Polly  was  left 
the  claim,  but  we  had  to  discover  it  all  over  again 


SEVERAL  MOMENTOUS  LETTERS     141 

under  a  new  claim,  you  see,"  explained  Eleanor, 
anxiously. 

"That  will  make  a  fine  little  problem  in  law,  Fm 
thinking,"  laughed  Tom,  shaking  his  head. 

"It  would  if  all  concerned  could  not  agree,  but 
we  all  intend  to  agree — Ken  said  so!"  exclaimed 
Polly,  emphatically. 

"Oh— you-all  know  this  'Ken'  so  well,  eh?" 
teased  John. 

"Of  course !  And  he  is  the  nicest  boy — as  nice 
as  Jim  La-timer,  anyway,"  retorted  Eleanor. 

Every  one  laughed,  and  Tom  said :  "Well,  after 
paying  my  kid  brother  such  a  left-handed  compli- 
ment, I  feel  I  must  continue  my  work  on  that  mine 
problem." 

"Give  us  a  chance  to  finish  our  reports,  won't 
you,  before  you  tell  us  you  gave  away  your  inter- 
ests, or  launched  us  all  in  a  will-contest,"  added 
John,  laughingly.  Then  he  continued: 

"Now  this  is  what  we  have  to  say  about  Choko's 
Find:  The  pyramids  of  trash  now  covering  that 
area  of  Top  Notch  can  be  readily  cleared  away. 
We  set  fire  to  certain  parts  and  opened  a  way  to 
the  ravine.  There  we  found  the  old  gulch  liter- 
ally filled  in  with  rocks,  earth  and  roots,  so  that 
we  could  not  get  through  to  find  the  cave.  But 
we  brought  home  bits  of  gold  ore,  just  the  same." 


i42  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

John  rolled  the  nuggets  across  the  table,  and 
the  girls  gaz«d  with  bated  breath  at  what  they 
believed  had  beea  buried  forever  under  the  land- 
slide. 

"We  have  much  to  tell  you  about  this,  so  let's 
go  to  the  living-room  to  talk,"  suggested  Mr. 
Brewster,  rising. 


CHAPTER  VIII 


"POLLY-ELEANOR  COMPANY,  INC." 


THE  girls  were  impatient  to  hear  about  the 
plans  Mr.  Brewster  and  the  two  engineers  had  de- 
cided upon,  but  Mrs.  Brewster  smiled  knowingly, 
as  if  she  had  already  been  told  the  secret.  Mr. 
Brewster  was  morose  and  silent,  looking  more  as 
if  he  was  compelled  to  consent  to  something  as 
a  just  and  fair  man,  rather  than  from  preference 
and  desire. 

"Now  don't  you  girls  ask  too  many  questions 
if  you  are  displeased  or  delighted  at  what  we  tell 
you,"  began  John,  nodding  to  Tom  to  proceed 
with  his  story. 

Having  promised  not  to  interrupt  the  impor- 
tant conference,  the  girls  sat  expectantly  smiling 
at  the  chair-man  of  the  meeting. 

"I  have  to  preface  our  report  on  Choko's  Find, 
by  telling  you-all  about  a  little  company  that  was 
incorporated  in  New  York  several  months  ago. 
Father  wrote  me  all  about  it. 

143 


144  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

"Dr.  Evans  is  a  very  clever  inventor,  as  you 
now  know,  and  having  this  unusual  device  for  cut- 
ting stones  by  machine,  he  called  on  father's  law 
firm  to  secure  a  patent  on  it  for  him.  Larimer 
Brothers  make  a  specialty  of  patents,  you  know. 

"Well,  the  doctor  had  but  little  money  for  the 
costs,  and  father  saw  a  great  fortune  in  the  in- 
vention if  it  was  properly  financed.  So  articles 
of  agreement  were  drawn  up,  that  Larimer 
Brothers  were  to  pay  all  costs  of  getting  the  ma- 
chine on  the  market,  and  for  this  they  were  to 
share  in  the  stock  of  the  company. 

"This  was  done  and  when  the  papers  were 
ready  and  the  shares  of  stock  divided  between 
the  principals,  an  injunction  was  served  on  Dad  by 
a  tricky  company  in  New  York  which  claimed 
prior  rights  to  the  patent.  This  has  held  up 
everything  so  that  Dr.  Evans  is  not  sure  whether 
he  will  ever  realize  anything  out  of  his  invention 
or  not.  Of  course,  we  are  fighting  the  legality 
of  Ratzger  &  Wriggley's  injunction  and  claims. 

"Having  risked  all  his  little  bank  account  on  the 
outcome  of  this  idea  of  his,  the  doctor  now  hasn't 
a  cent  to  bless  himself  with.  That  is  why  Ken- 
neth Evans  was  sent  to  work  this  summer,  to  earn 
his  own  keep. 

"Fortunately,  Dad  had  a  letter  from  Jim,  who 


"POLLY-ELEANOR  CO.,  INC."      145 

was  out  in  the  mountains  with  a  government  survey 
crew,  in  which  it  said  that  they  were  short  a  few 
good  men  and  two  young  apprentices  such  as  he 
himself  was.  Kenneth  and  Jim  attended  the  same 
school  at  home,  so  Dad  telephoned  Dr.  Evans 
about  the  opening.  That  is  how  Ken  happened 
to  come  West. 

"Now  I  hear  that  the  Courts  uphold  Dr.  Evans 
in  his  right  to  the  patent,  and  the  company  can 
go  on  with  their  plans.  If  they  can  find  suit- 
able material  to  mine  and  without  too  much  ex- 
pense for  apparatus,  they  will  start  in  at  once 
with  a  close  corporation.  But  should  they  find  it 
will  take  great  capital  to  mine  the  right  kind  of 
stones,  the  original  members  of  the  company  may 
have  to  sell  half  of  their  rights,  to  get  sufficient 
money  to  launch  the  work.  Do  you  girls  follow 
me  as  far  as  I  have  explained?" 

"Oh,  yes,  it's  clear  as  day,"  replied  Eleanor, 
impatiently. 

"Do  you  grasp  the  thing,  Polly?"  asked  John. 

"I  don't  understand  anything  about  stocks  and 
corporations  but  I  do  understand  what  Tom  has 
said,  so  far,"  returned  Polly. 

"Well,  then,  all  right;  I'll  proceed,"  said  Tom. 

"When  I  first  visited  at  Pebbly  Pit  with  John, 
I  saw  the  wonderful  colored  stones  of  Rainbow 


i46  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

Cliffs  and  begged  Mr.  Brewster  to  allow  me  to 
send  on  samples  of  them  to  father,  as  I  was  sure 
they  were  just  what  Dr.  Evans  sought  for  his 
machine  to  cut.  But  I  could  not  make  my  friend, 
here,  see  any  advantage  in  adding  more  money  to 
his  bank  account.  So  I  had  to  leave  without 
having  won  my  plea.  , 

"But  I  wrote  father  and  told  him  all  about  the 
great  store  of  unmined  stones  located  in  plain 
view  at  the  Cliffs.  Later,  when  the  injunction 
stopped  all  progress  in  the  work,  I  almost  forgot 
Rainbow  Cliffs  again. 

"But  now  that  the  'Evans  Jewel  Cutter'  is  pro- 
tected, and  the  owners  are  looking  for  material 
to  manufacture,  the  Rainbow  Cliffs  are  in  the  fore-' 
ground  again  for  negotiation. 

"Then  came  the  surprising  telegram  from  Oak 
Creek,  informing  John  about  the  gold  mine 
claimed  by  Polly.  As  we  were  told  to  reach  Oak 
Creek  without  delay,  we  started  without  sending 
word  to  the  folks  at  home  about  our  leaving  our 
summer  work.  And  now  this  is  what  we  have 
planned  regarding  Choko's  Find. 

"If  father's  firm,  Mr.  Brewster,  and  all  the 
friends  everywhere,  could  scrape  together  all  the 
money  they  had,  it  would  not  be  sufficient  to  carry 
out  the  work  at  Choko's  Find.  The  conditions 


"POLLY-ELEANOR  CO.,  INC."      147 

are  such  that  every  precaution  must  be  taken  to 
avoid,  in  the  future,  any  danger  from  new  land- 
slides. The  lay  of  the  land  where  the  gold  is 
hidden,  is  such  that  the  vein  may  not  run  deep 
into  the  mountain — it  may  be  merely  a  surface 
deposit  in  the  cave.  In  this  case,  the  real  vein 
may  be  hidden  so  deep  that  it  would  need  the  bor- 
ing down  into  great  depths  to  find  the  metal.  All 
this  will  take  time  and  money. 

"That  means  that  Polly  and  Eleanor  will  have 
to  sacrifice  the  greater  interest  in  their  mine  to 
secure  capital  with  which  to  work  it.  Or  they 
can  sell  the  claim  for  cash— or  they  can  arrange 
to  be  paid  a  royalty  on  all  the  ore  metal  mined. 
Where  it  is  possible,  it  is  always  best  to  retain  a 
controlling  share  of  stock  in  the  company  formed. 

"John  and  I  have  pictures  on  hand  and  plans 
and  engineering  reports  of  Top  Notch  and  the 
claim.  We  also  secured  the  specimen  of  gold 
that  you  have  there.  I  will  tell  you  the  thril- 
ling experiences  we  had  in  getting  at  the  deposit, 
when  I  finish  this  plan. 

"To  transport  the  ore  from  the  mine  to  some 
station  on  the  railroad,  will  necessitate  a  spur 
being  built  from  Oak  Creek,  or  a  new  line  being 
run  from  the  mainline  at  Denver  over  to  Bear 
Forks.  In  either  case,  it  will  cost  a  mint  to  build 


i4«  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

and  run  such  a  railway  because  of  the  long  tun«= 
nels  that  will  have  to  be  cut  through  the  mountains, 
and  the  lack  of  other  traffic  over  a  new  road. 

"Even  a  sort  of  switch-back  railway  running 
from  the  mine  to  the  valley  will  cost  us  more 
money  than  we  can  get  together.  So  we  would 
have  to  take  in  outside  capital  to  supply  the  needs. 
OR " 

Here  Tom  Latimer  paused  to  impress  his 
hearers  with  what  he  was  about  to  say.  Mr. 
Brewster  moved  uneasily  in  his  arm-chair,  but 
every  one  else  was  intensely  interested. 

"The  Polly-Eleanor  Company  can  sell  certain 
stock  in  their  mining  company  to  Sam  Brewster. 
He,  or  his  company  that  owns  and  works  Rain- 
bow Cliffs,  can  furnish  capital  to  build  and  work 
things  in  connection  with  the  mines. 

"The  Evans'  Jewel  Cutting  Company  will  be 
harvesting  such  rich  returns  from  Rainbow  Cliffs, 
that  it  will  be  able  to  supply  all  the  capital  needed 
to  carry  out  the  vast  projects  on  Top  Notch. 
And  the  voting  stock  in  both  companies  will  be 
held  by  interested  parties  who  can  appreciate  the 
fact  that  neither  company  can  take  advantage  of 
the  other  without  both  failing.  It  will  be  to  the 
good  of  all  concerned  to  see  that  everything  con- 


"POLLY-ELEANOR  CO.,  INC."      I49 

Mected  with  both  mines,  is  done  on  the  level  and 
to  the  best  of  every  one's  ability. 

"Of  course  it  will  take  a  year  or  two  before 
we  can  be  ready  to  drill  down  through  that  cave 
for  the  ore,  but  we  can  start  in  on  Rainbow  Cliffs 
without  any  delay  and  begin  to  reap  the  rewards 
of  investment  at  once.  In  the  case  of  Mr.  Brew- 
ster  agreeing  to  have  his  Cliffs  mined  for  the 
stones,  and  the  Polly-Eleanor  Company  agree- 
ing to  combine  with  Evans'  Jewel  Company  for 
mining  their  gold,  both  can  erect  plants  on  the 
same  land,  and  use  the  same  railroad  for  carry- 
ing their  products  to  the  outside  world.  That 
will  save  a  great  expense  because  the  cost  of  build- 
ing and  maintaining  railroads  and  buildings,  will 
be  divided  by  two." 

Tom  finished  and  John  eagerly  asked:  "What 
do  you-all  think  of  our  great  idea?  Of  course, 
Montresor's  heirs  ought  to  hold  an  interest,  but 
should  they  be  Kenneth  and  his  mother,  it  will 
simplify  matters  for  all." 

That  started  such  a  babel  of  voices  that  Sam 
Brewster  got  up  and  left  the  room.  But  no  one 
noticed  his  absence,  as  all  were  too  interested  in 
planning  for  the  fabulous  wealth  they  conjured 
up  in  their  thoughts. 


150  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

After  more  than  an  hour  of  animated  dis- 
cussion and  explanation,  it  was  decided  to  await 
the  decision  of  the  mechanics  in  the  East  who 
would  experiment  on  the  stones  from  Rainbow 
Cliffs.  A  box  of  the  stones  would  be  expressed 
at  once,  and  a  letter  from  John  to  Mr.  Latimer 
would  explain  everything. 

"What  does  father  say  to  this,  mother?"  asked 
Polly. 

"He  says  that,  as  the  ranch  is  legally  mine,  he 
has  no  vote  in  the  matter." 

"Oh  nonsense!  Even  if  he  did  deed  Pebbly 
Pit  to  you  for  a  wedding  gift,  you  always  do  every- 
thing to  please  him,"  declared  John. 

"Yes,  but  he  refuses  to  say  what  he  thinks  is 
best  in  this  matter,"  added  Mrs.  Brewster. 

"Well,  seeing  that  so  much  hinges  on  his  will- 
ingness to  cooperate  with  us,"  announced  John, 
impatiently,  "I  am  going  to  say  exactly  what  I 
have  felt  to  be  the  real  cause  of  his  disapproval 
of  turning  the  Cliffs  into  money." 

Mrs*  Brewster  glanced  anxiously  from  the  win- 
dow to  see  if  her  husband  could  hear  what  was 
said,  but  Sam  Brewster  had  evidently  wandered 
away  from  the  porch  as  he  was  not  to  be  seen. 

"Father  told  Tom  and  me,  while  on  Top  Notch, 
that  he  really  had  no  personal  objections  to  hav- 


"POLLY-ELEANOR  CO.,  INC"      151, 

ing  the  stones  mined  from  Rainbow  Cliffs,  but 
all  unsightly  machinery  and  the  riff-raff  of  miners 
that  would  be  necessary  in  such  work,  must  be  kept 
out  of  sight  of  the  house.  He  explained  that 
most  of  the  working  ends  of  the  project  could 
be  stationed  back  of  the  cliffs  down  in  the  Devil's 
Causeway,  and  the  road  that  would  have  to  run 
to  Bear  Forks  trail  for  the  conveyance  of  the 
stone,  could  be  cut  through  in  back  of  the 
'Guards'  and  'The  Imps'  of  the  cliffs. 

"He  then  said  that  there  was  but  one  condi- 
tion he  exacted  from  any  one  who  was  interested 
in  the  plan,  and  that  was  that  no  undue  influence 
would  be  brought  to  bear  upon  Polly  to  increase 
her  desire  to  leave  home  for  a  higher  education. 
His  consent  will  be  willingly  given,  and  he  will 
aid  us  in  every  way  to  a  successful  issue  if  Polly 
agrees  to  remain  at  home  and  give  up  her  plan 
to  go  away  to  school." 

As  this  unexpected  ultimatum  was  given,  every 
one  gasped,  and  Polly  cried:  "Oh,  no  I  Father 
didn't  say  that,  did  he?" 

John  remained  silent,  and  Polly  began  to  cry 
pathetically,  as  her  chief  delight  in  having  found 
Choko's  Find,  was  the  fact  that  she  would  have 
enough  money  of  her  own  to  not  only  go  to  High 
School,  but  also  to  go  through  one  of  the  large 


152  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

women's  colleges.  Even  if  her  father  refused  to 
finance  such  an  educational  ideal,  she  would  have 
had  her  own  income  to  draw  upon. 

"Now  wait  a  moment,  Poll,  before  you  lose  all 
hope !"  exclaimed  John,  quickly  glancing  from 
Anne  to  his  mother,  and  then  back  to  his  sister. 

"'I  asked  father  if  he  would  agree  to  your  hav- 
ing a  private  teacher  live  at  Pebbly  Pit  to  edu- 
cate you,  as  you  craved  to  be.  He  is  more  than 
willing  to  consent  to  this,  as  it  is  not  the  education 
or  money  he  begrudges  you,  but  the  need  of  your 
going  away  from  home  to  get  it.  Now  isn't  that 
fine?" 

"Where  can  we  find  a  teacher  who  will  bury 
herself  in  this  crater  just  to  teach  one  girl?"  de- 
manded Polly,  wiping  her  eyes. 

"W-h-y — I  thought  perhaps "  John  stam- 
mered uncomfortably,  then  gathered  courage  to 
add:  "Miss  Stewart  liked  it  at  Bear  Forks  one 
year,  and  she  has  been  teaching  Eleanor  for  two 
years.  She  may  agree  to  teach  you  this  year  for 
a  tempting  salary." 

"Anne  has  had  an  unusual  offer  to  teach  a 
seminary  class  in  New  York,"  said  Mrs.  Brewster, 
without  any  sign  of  partiality  for  any  one  or  any 
plan. 

"Oh!"  remarked  John. 


"POLLY-ELEANOR  CO.,  INC."      153 

But  Tom  Latimer  eagerly  added :  "We  can  offer 
Miss  Stewart  a  better  salary  for  her  time  than 
any  New  York  school  can,  if  she  will  agree  to 
stay  here  and  help  us  win  our  way  to  Rainbow 
Cliffs." 

Before  Anne  could  reply,  Polly  cried:  "But  I 
don't  want  any  teacher  to  live  here  and  educate 
me !  Can't  you  see  that  I  want  to  go  out,  OUT — 
somewhere,  anywhere,  away  from  this  volcanic 
pit  where  I  have  been  buried  for  fourteen  years !" 

Once  Polly  freed  herself  of  the  reticence  of 
speaking  of  her  own  ideals  and  longings  for  ex- 
perience, she  almost  volleyed  forth  her  words, 
so  that  every  one  sat  astonished  at  her  eloquence. 

"When  John  went  away  to  school  I  was  aw- 
fully lonesome  for  he  used  to  take  me  everywhere 
he  went,  and  we  had  good  times. 

"Father  and  mother  were  good — but  they  don't 
know  what  the  girl  of  to-day  craves!  It  isn't 
that  we  girls  are  brought  up  so  differently  from 
our  parents,  or  that  they  get  modern  ideas  into 
their  heads  from  mixing  with  society  girls  or  from 
reading  of  them.  It  is  in  the  air  we  breathe — 
1  the  desire  to  come  out  of  swaddling  clothes  and 
take  a  stand  for  our  individual  rights!  Every 
girl  has  the  germ  of  self-expression  in  her  some- 
where, and  if  it  is  starved  and  choked  by  con- 


154  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

ventionalities  and  parental  bonds,  she  is  bound  to 
find  an  outlet  for  her  energy  in  some  unprofitable 
way.  If  folks  would  only  SEE  that  girls,  to-day, 
are  capable  of  accomplishing  what  the  boys  of  to- 
day are  doing,  and  then  give  us  a  chance,  there 
won't  be  so  many  slatterns  and  silly  women-folk 
in  the  future. 

"I  learned  all  I  could  get  out  of  Bear  Forks' 
school-books,  but  it  wasn't  half  enough  for  me. 
Now  I  am  going  to  go  to  High,  or  leave  home 
to  work  somewhere.  I  will  not  stay  here  to  eat 
my  heart  out  over  the  outside  world  and  what 
it  is  doing.  I  may  be  awfully  disappointed  when 
I  get  acquainted  with  folks,  outside,  but  at  least 
I  want  the  opportunity  NOW,  just  as  my  brother 
John  has  it. 

"Mother  and  father  took  it  as  a  matter  of 
course,  that  their  boy  must  go  to  college  and 
carve  a  career  for  himself.  But  their  girl  ought 
never  to  dream  of  such  foibles — she  must  remain 
at  home  and  learn  to  sew  and  cook  and  do  all  the 
household  chores !  If  any  sort  of  a  decent  rancher 
comes  along  who  wants  to  marry,  then  I  must 
thank  him  and  tie  myself  down  to  take  care  of 
his  socks  and  buttons,  and  rear  a  fine  family! 

"No,  no,  NO  I  I  tell  you  I  just  won't  do  it!" 
Polly  fairly  screamed  out  the  last  words  and 


i     "POLLY-ELEANOR  CO.,  INC."      155 

stamped  her  foot  vehemently,  as  she  stood  de- 
claring what  she  thought  of  such  a  life. 

Mrs.  Brewster  hid  her  face  in  a  handkerchief 
— whether  she  was  weeping  or  trymg  to  hide  her 
gratification  at  hearing  her  daughter  assert  her 
rights  in  such  a  positive  manner,  no  one  knew. 

"W-h-y — Polly  Brewster!  You  are  positively 
unladylike  in  your  manner  of  speaking  of  marriage 
and  a  future  husband!"  objected  Barbara,  shocked. 

Polly  turned  on  her,  as  the  proverbial  worm 
turned : 

"Pooh!  What  do  you  know  about  real  life! 
You — a  silly  selfish  moth !  All  you  can  think  of 
is  money,  'lothes,  beaus! 

"You  can't  see  a  spider  without  fainting,  and 
you  mince  about  the  moment  you  hear  John  or 
Tom  are  near.  You're  not  a  woman  of  to-day! 
You're  a  manufactured  specimen  of  the  past  gen- 
eration. Thank  goodness,  such  as  you  are  on  the 
wane;  and  even  modern  men  who  are  looking  for 
mates — not  helpless  weights  upon  their  backs — 
select  them  from  the  business  world  where  girls 
are  climbing  to  the  top  of  the  ladder  as  fast  as 
conditions  will  permit  them  to. 

"Don't  you  sit  there  with  your  powdered  face 
and  crimped-up  hair  and  tell  me  I  am  unlady- 
like! You  never  thought  of  being  the  lady  your 


156  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

sister  is,  and  certainly  I  wouldn't  say  that  you  can 
hold  a  candle  to  me!  I  was  brought  up  by  a  lady, 
and  I  call  myself  as  thorough  a  one  as  any  of 
your  society  friends!" 

"Oh,  Polly — dearest!"  Eleanor  squealed,  run- 
ning over  and  squeezing  her  friend  in  her  arms  so 
that  she  gasped.  Then  releasing  her,  said:  "I 
never  heard  anything  so  glorious  in  my  life !  Not 
even  the  suffrage  leader  in  Chicago,  when  she  was 
stumping  for  'Votes  for  Women,'  was  ever  as 
thrilling  as  you!" 

"Polly,  you  are  right!  A  giri  has  as  good  a 
right  to  her  individual  expression  in  life  as  any 
man  has.  I  will  champion  your  cause,  hence- 
forth, and  even  try  to  convince  your  father  that 
he  is  narrow-minded  in  his  selfishness  about  tying 
you  to  his  heels,"  declared  Anne  Stewart,  bravely 
throwing  down  the  "glove"  to  every  one. 

Eleanor  now  transferred  her  hugs  and  admir- 
ation to  Anne,  and  Mrs.  Brewster  lifted  her  face 
from  the  screen  of  a  handkerchief  to  look  at 
John. 

Tom  Latimer  and  John  exchanged  looks,  then 
turned  to  Mrs.  Brewster.  John  was  the  first  to 
speak. 

"Mother,  it  looks  as  if  Tolly-Eleanor  Com- 
pany' are  going  to  incorporate  themselves  in  spite 


"POLLY-ELEANOR  CO.,  INC."      157 

of  all  we  can  do  to  claim  their  shares  of  stock." 

"I  haven't  a  doubt  but  that  the  Tolly-Eleanor 
Company/  is  bound  to  succeed  in  any  venture  of 
life,"  replied  Mrs.  Brewster. 

"Mother,  you  don't  blame  me  for  wanting  to 
get  away  from  you?"  cried  Polly,  running  over 
to  her  mother. 

"Dearest,  I  would  be  a  poor  mother  if  I  ex- 
pected to  have  my  children  hang  about  my  neck 
to  remind  me  that  I  ought  to  be  petted  and  worked 
for,  just  because  I  claimed  the  right  of  being  their 
parent!  Every  noble  parent  is  only  too  willing 
to  judiciously  assist  a  child  in  finding  his  or  her 
own  niche  in  life. 

"I  have  known  for  a  long  time  that  you  would 
realize  how  stunting  this  ranch-life  is  to  your  un-. 
folding  aspirations.  For  me,  it  embraces  all  that 
I  love  and  have,  but  for  you  two  ambitious  chil- 
dren of  my  younger  days,  it  would  be  a  veritable 
grave. 

"I  feel  exactly  as  Anne  does  about  this  step — 
try  your  own  wings,  dear  child,  and  wisely  select 
your  own  walk  in  life.  No  father  or  mother 
can  live  your  life  for  you,  but  they  can  guide 
and  warn  you  away  from  snares  and  pitfalls. 
When  a  child  has  cast  aside  its  Waddling  clothes, 
as  you  said,  it  must  stand  alone. 


158  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

"I  have  argued  this  out  with  your  father,  many 
times  this  past  year,  but  he  clings  fondly  to  the 
belief  that  you  are  too  young  to  leave  home;  and 
he  has  persisted  in  holding  you  in  the  material 
concept,  instead  of  realizing  that  you  are  purely 
mental  and  must  feed  your  mental  hunger  with 
proper  nourishment. 

"I  had  another  argument  with  him  this  even- 
ing, after  his  return  from  the  Slide.  He  ex- 
pected to  convince  me  that  everything  would  go 
to  ruin  if  the  Cliffs  were  worked  and  you  were 
allowed  to  go  away  to  school.  But  I  turned  the 
tables :  I  convinced  him  that  he  was  standing  in 
your  light  of  a  future  glory  by  keeping  you  lim- 
ited in  your  realization  of  an  ideal.  That  only  a 
family  disaster  and  your  unhappiness,  must  result 
from  such  old-fashioned  views. 

"He  finally  agreed  that  if  you  and  the  others, 
here,  said  that  a  higher  education  was  what  his 
girl  craved  and  needed,  he  would  withdraw  all 
objections — once  for  all.  That  is  why  he  left 
us — to  discuss  and  settle  this  momentous  question. 
Polly,  you  have  won !" 

1      Polly  flung  her  arms  about  her  mother's  neck 
,  and  wept  softly:     "But  poor  father!     At  what 
costs  have  I  won?" 

"S-sh!     Don't  let  any  one  hear  you  weaken 


"POLLY-ELEANOR  CO.,  INC."      159 

now.  This  is  the  moment  of  your  triumph,  and 
you  must  not  look  back  lest  you  be  turned  to  a 
'pillar  of  salt,' "  whispered  her  mother. 

"Then  father  did  agree  to  have  Polly  go  to 
school?"  asked  John,  curiously. 

"Yes,  if  you-all  agreed  that  it  was  for  the 
best." 

"And  are  we  to  have  the  Cliffs  if  the  stone 
proves  valuable?"  eagerly  added  Tom  Latimer. 

"Having  waived  his  right  to  keep  Polly  at 
home,  he  says  we  can  turn  the  whole  crater  upside- 
down  if  we  like,"  said  Mrs.  Brewster,  smilingly. 
"But  I  wouldn't  goad  him,  too  far,  just  now.  We 
have  won  such  a  mighty  victory,  that  you  haven't 
the  faintest  idea  of  what  it  means  to  the  van- 
quished. It  is  doubtful  if  we  can  know  anything 
definite  about  the  Cliffs  for  the  next  two  or  three 
weeks,  so  let  us  not  speak  of  it  until  then." 

"But,  Mrs.  Brewster,  if  Anne  goes  to  New 
York  to  teach,  and  takes  her  mother,  where  will 
Polly  stay?  I've  been  thinking  how  fine  it  will 
be  to  have  her  live  with  me  in  Chicago,"  said 
Eleanor,  eagerly. 

"Why — Eleanor  Maynard!  You  can't  invite 
strangers  to  your  mother's  home !  It  may  not  be 
convenient  to  have  any  one  there  this  winter,"  ob- 
jected Barbara. 


160  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

"Well,  don't  borrow  trouble,  Bob !  It's  fath- 
er's home  as  well  as  mother's,  and  I  can  ask  a 
friend  to  stay  with  me  if  I  like." 

"I  wouldn't  think  of  ever  going  to  your  home, 
Nolla  dear.  I'd  love  to  know  your  father  from 
all  you  tell  me,  but  I  never  would  stay  in  that 
house,"  declared  Polly,  quickly. 

"We  have  several  weeks  to  discuss  a  school  for 
Polly,"  remarked  Mrs.  Brewster,  rising  to  go  out 
and  seek  her  husband. 

"I'd  love  to  be  with  Anne,"  ventured  Polly, 
wistfully. 

"Maybe  you  will,  dear.  Don't  say  any  more 
about  it,  now,  but  trust  to  your  dear  mother's 
wisdom  and  ways.  Whatever  is  best  for  you, 
she  will  see  that  it  is  brought  about,"  replied 
Anne,  thus  winning  a  grateful  smile  from  John. 

Barbara  now  went  to  her  room,  as  she  felt  the 
company  was  not  appreciative  of  her  presence, 
and  was  too  attentive  on  Polly.  Polly  and  Elea- 
nor went  over  to  incidentally  ask  Tom  Latimer 
about  certain  details  in  Evans'  patent,  and  more 
especially  what  did  he  know  about  Kenneth  Evans. 
As  both  girls  were  acquainted  with  Jim  Latimer, 
they  had  not  the  same  curiosity  to  hear  any  one 
talk  about  him. 

But  John  took  advantage  of  this  trio  tete-a-tete 


"POLLY-ELEANOR  CO.,  INC."      161 

to  hurry  Anne  out  of  the  room.  Quite  naturally, 
they  took  the  path  that  ran  about  the  side  of  the 
house,  where  the  rose-climbers  cast  heavy  shad- 
ows in  the  moon-light.  Thence  they  walked,  arm 
in  arm,  along  the  crater-trail  where  it  led  to  the 
Clrffs. 


CHAPTER  IX 

JEB'S    SUNDAY  NIGHT   OFF 

JIM  LATIMER  and  Kenneth  Evans  made  their 
appearance  much  earlier  on  Sunday  morning,  than 
they  had  on  the  previous  one.  When  greetings 
with  his  brother,  and  the  family  at  Pebbly  Pit 
were  over,  Jim  explained:  "The  Boss  lifted  his 
ban  on  using  the  horses,  when  he  found  his  men 
grumbling  all  week  over  their  wretched  Sunday." 

Of  course,  the  two  new  arrivals  were  interested 
in  hearing  all  about  the  gold  mine  and  its  present 
condition,  not  only  because  there  might  be  a  pos- 
sibility that  Kenneth's  uncle  was  the  Montresor 
who  first  discovered  the  vein  of  ore,  but  also  be- 
cause Polly  and  Eleanor  were  such  good  pals,  and 
they  deserved  something  big  like  a  gold  mine! 
Which  goes  to  show  that  youth  needs  no  time  or 
preparation  to  discover  and  appreciate  any  de- 
sirable qualities  of  mind  and  soul. 

Barbara  was  in  her  element  that  Sunday,  as 
John  escorted  Anne  wherever  they  went,  and  the 

162 


JEB  WAS  PRACTICING  LOVE-MAKING  FROM  A  BOOK. 
Polly  and  Eleanor.  Page  169 


JEB'S  SUNDAY  NIGHT  OFF       163 

two  younger  girls  had  Jim  and  Kenneth  for  com- 
panions. So,  quite  naturally,  Tom  Latimer  fell 
to  her  lot.  As  she  had  been  carefully  trained  to 
make  the  most  of  any  opportunity  offered,  espe- 
cially with  a  rich  and  desirable  young  man  for  the 
prize,  she  used  every  art  to  captivate  Bob.  But 
the  young  man  was  sensibly  educated  and  won- 
dered why  really  good-looking  girls  should  act 
as  silly  as  Barbara  did  on  this  occasion. 

He  felt  embarrassed  at  having  to  look  at  her 
from  time  to  time,  as  she  was  powdered  and 
rouged  as  she  would  have  been  for  a  ballroom 
in  the  city,  and  poor  Tom  thought  that,  perhaps, 
she  had  some  loathsome  irruption  on  her  face  that 
necessitated  this  covering  of  the  natural  skin. 
Consequently  he  managed  to  keep  his  eyes  turned 
away  that  the  girl  might  not  feel  too  unhappy  over 
her  trouble. 

But  Barbara  thought  her  cavalier  was  so  ef- 
fected that  he  could  not  look  at  her  without  feel- 
ing her  powers  of  beauty  and  attraction;  so  she 
posed  and  minced  her  way  as  she  fondly  believed 
into  Tom's  plastic  heart.  Had  she  but  known 
the  truth! 

A  merry  family  group  sat  down,  at  noon,  to  the 
delicious  dinner  served  under  the  giant  oak-tree. 
And  Mr.  Brewster,  as  affable  as  if  he  had  nor 


1 64  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

been  tried  by  a  family-court  the  night  previous, 
asked  the  younger  boys  how  their  survey-work  was 
progressing. 

"Oh  fine  I  We  have  lots  of  fun  in  camp,  and 
when  we  go  out  on  a  section  the  work  is  so  inter- 
esting!" exclaimed  Kenneth. 

"With  such  a  large  crowd  of  men,  I  suppose 
you  two  boys  are  considered  more  as  kids  who  are 
to  be  teased  and  imposed  upon,  eh?"  asked  Tom 
Latimer,  having  read  his  brother's  letters  about 
the  crew. 

"That's  the  best  part  of  the  crowd — they  seem 
to  forget  that  we  both  are  tenderfeet  and  years 
younger  than  they  are.  Ken  and  I  are  treated 
exactly  like  any  of  the  older  men  in  the  crew," 
replied  Jim. 

"Yes,  we  are  paired  off  with  certain  groups  to 
rain-proof  the  canvas  tents,  to  act  as  commissary 
agents,  and  to  share  in  all  the  chores  the  others 
do.  Just  because  Jim  has  a  rich  father  and  be- 
cause I  have  to  work  for  a  living,  makes  no  dif- 
ference to  them.  Caste  and  wealth  counts  as 
nothing  out  fn  these  wilds.  It  is  what  a  fellow 
stands  for  and  can  prove  that  is  his  introduction 
and  guarantee  of  manliness,"  added  Kenneth. 

"Did  your  crew  move  to  a  new  line,  as  you 
thought  they  would?"  asked  Eleanor. 


JEB'S  SUNDAY  NIGHT  OFF       165 

"Yes,  we  are  now  at  Silver  Creek,  but  we  only 
have  another  week's  work  to  do  there.  Then  we 
move  on  to  the  next  section  which  will  be  near 
Buffalo  Park.  Isn't  that  the  place  where  you  said 
Old  Montresor  had  a  cabin?"  said  Jim. 

"Yes,  and  it  is  a  lovely  spot.  I've  been  there, 
and  I  promised  Nolla  I'd  ride  there  with  her 
some  day,"  returned  Polly. 

"Oh,  I  say,  girls  1  Wouldn't  it  be  great  to 
have  you-aK  ride  up  while  we  camped  there  ?  You 
could  make  up  a  party  of  it,  couldn't  you  ?"  asked 
Kenneth,  eagerly. 

"And  we'd  get  Old  Carew  to  give  you  a 
regular  party!  The  men  in  our  crowd  are  gen- 
tlemen from  different  parts  of  the  States,  and  they 
would  help  us  entertain,"  added  Jim. 

"I  think  it  would  be  a  treat,  Mrs.  Brewster, 
for  all  of  us.  John  and  I  would  join  the  pic- 
nickers," now  said  Tom  Latimer. 

"Say,  would  you  really,  Tom?"  cried  Jim,  de- 
lightedly. 

"Sure  thing.  If  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Brewster  ap- 
prove." 

John  looked  at  his  mother.  "It  will  be  dandy, 
Mother,  if  you  and  Dad  will  go,  too." 

"Father  and  I  wouldn't  go,  John,  if  Tom  and 
you  will  escort  the  girls,"  returned  Mrs.  Brewster. 


1 66  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

"Oh,  but  we  couldn't  think  of  going,  Mrs. 
Brewster,  unless  you  chaperoned  us  among  so 
many  men!"  exclaimed  Barbara.  Then  when  she 
saw  Tom  Larimer  looking  at  her  she  modestly 
drooped  her  head. 

Tom  was  thinking:  "Of  all  the  empty-headed 
vain  creatures  it  ever  was  my  misfortune  to  meet, 
she  takes  the  cake!" 

"That  needn't  trouble  you,  girls.  If  you  will 
come  on  a  Saturday  and  spend  Sunday  at  camp 
with  us,  we  will  have  the  Boss's  wife  there  to  act 
as  hostess.  Mrs.  Carew  always  spends  Sundays 
at  camp — unless  the  Boss  rides  down  to  town  to 
visit  her.  Sometimes  she  brings  the  school 
teacher  from  Oak  Creek,  or  other  ladies  who  en- 
joy the  novel  life  in  a  survey  camp,"  explained 
Jim,  enthusiastically. 

"Do  let's  go,  Anne!  Can't  we  say  yes?"  said 
Eleanor,  eagerly. 

"How  long  will  both  of  you  boys  be  here?" 
Anne  asked  of  John. 

"We  planned  to  wait  until  we  hear,  one  way 
or  the  other,  regarding  the  stones  we  sent  to  New 
York,  and  about  the  financing  of  Choko's  Find. 
Perhaps  Dad  and  Dr.  Evans  might  even  come 
out  and  look  the  ground  over  for  themselves,  be- 
fore answering  my  letter,"  said  John. 


JEB'S  SUNDAY  NIGHT  OFF       167 

"Then  we  could  safely  arrange  to  go  next  Sun- 
day, or  the  Sunday  after?" 

"Oh,  yes,  we  will  be  home  for  a  month,  most 
likely."  ' 

John's  voice  betrayed  his  satisfaction  that  such 
was  to  be  the  case,  and  Anne  smiled  faintly,  be- 
cause she  could  not  control  her  own  pleasure  in 
hearing  him  say  so.  Mrs.  Brewster  and  Tom 
Latimer  exchanged  glances  of  understanding  but 
no  one  else  saw  them. 

So  it  was  decided  that  if  Mrs.  Carew  was  to 
visit  her  husband  over  the  following  week-end, 
and  the  weather  permitted,  the  young  folks  would 
form  a  party  to  ride  up  to  Buffalo  Park  on  Sat- 
urday. With  this  pleasure  in  view,  the  two  boys 
went  back  to  camp  in  the  early  afternoon,  the  dis- 
tance being  so  far  from  Pebbly  Pit,  that  it  would 
be  quite  dark  before  they  reached  camp. 

After  they  had  gone,  Polly  and  Eleanor  wan- 
dered around  at  a  loss  for  something  to  do.  Be- 
ing Sunday,  their  sports  were  limited  to  a  quiet 
time.  So  they  decided  to  visit  the  corrals  and  see 
Noddy  and  Choko,  as  the  burros  had  been 
neglected  by  their  riders  during  the  past  few  days 
of  the  excitement  over  gold. 

They  were  passing  the  wagon-house,  when 
Polly  caught  hold  of  Eleanor's  arm  for  silence. 


1 68  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

Both  girls  listened  and  distinctly  heard  a  man 
speaking  in  dramatic  tones.  The  voice  was  not 
recognizable,  although  Polly  had  not  heard  of  any 
new  hand  having  been  hired. 

"Ef  Ah  wasn't  shore  we-all'd  be  happy,  Ah 
never  would  be  h'ar  askin'  fur  yor  hajnd  a'n' 
heart."  Then  there  was  a  pause. 

A  low  mumbling  followed,  and  then  the  voice 
again  cried: 

"Ef  you-all  w'arn't  my  match,  Ah'd  go  away 
and  nary  trouble  this  ranch  agin.  But  folkses  kin 
see  we-all  w'ar  made  fer  each  other.  Even  John 
says  so!"  Then  sounded  another  jumble  of  in- 
coherent words. 

"Who  under  the  sun  is  it?  A  couple  who  are 
in  love  with  each  other?"  wondered  Eleanor, 
aloud,  as  she  turned  to  Polly. 

"Whoever  it  is,  they  are  behind  the  wagon- 
shed.  Let's  creep  up  to  the  harness  loft  and  see 
who  it  is.  There  isn't  another  woman  on  the 
farm  beside  Sary,  and  I'm  sure  I  saw  her  in  the 
house,  when  we  left  there." 

Polly  led  the  way  up  the  ladder  to  the  loft,  and 
then  they  crept  carefully  across  the  floor  until  she 
reached  the  wide  loft-window.  This  she  opened 
quietly  and  tilted  the  slats  so  they  could  look 
down  in  the  yard  behind  the  barn. 


JEB'S  SUNDAY  NIGHT  OFF        169 

There  sat  Jeb  with  a  few  loose  pages  from  a 
pamphlet  in  his  hands.  He  was  memorizing  the 
words,  and  as  he  did  so  he  mumbled  them. 

Every  time  he  had  mastered  a  certain  para- 
graph, he  would  stand  up,  strike  a  pose,  and  de- 
claim in  an  unnatural  voice,  to  the  pig-sty  that 
was  not  more  than  twenty  feet  away  from  the 
sheds. 

Suddenly  Polly  clapped  a  hand  over  her  mouth 
and  rocked  back  and  forth.  Instantly  Eleanor 
wanted  to  know  what  the  joke  was. 

"Oh,  oh!  I  know  now  where  Jeb  got  that 
paper  book.  It  was  advertised  in  our  Farm 
Journal  as  being  the  most  complete  education  on 
how  to  propose  gracefully  to  a  woman  that  man 
ever  could  find.  I  just  bet  Jeb  sent  for  it,  one 
day,  when  he  asked  me  to  address  an  envelope 
for  him.  He  must  be  practicing  to  ask  some  Oak 
Creek  girl  to  marry  him." 

Both  girls  now  smothered  their  laughter,  for 
the  idea  of  simple  little  Jeb  in  love  with  some  one 
was  too  funny  for  words.  He  seemed  terribly 
in  earnest,  however,  as  he  stood  up  again  and 
declared  his  love,  and  beat  his  breast  and  pre- 
tended to  tear  at  his  hair: 

"  'Ef  you-all  refuse  me  Ah  shall  end  mah 
wretched  existence!  What  is  life  widdout  love? 


I7o  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

Oh,  beuchus  maiden — '  no,  no,  Ah  musen't  call 
her  'maiden'  er  she'll  knock  me  down,"  murmured 
Jeb,  scratching  his  head  in  perplexity. 

His  audience  almost  choked  with  laughter,  but 
he  suddenly  brightened  up  again  and  said  to  him- 
self: "Yeh,  that's  it!  She'll  like  thct."  Then 
he  began  again  with  one  hand  over  his  heart  and 
the  other  tearing  at  the  thin  covering  of  hair  on 
his  head,  "  'Ef  you-all  refuse  me  Ah  shall  end  this 
wretched  life — '  no,  not  Ah  shall  end  this 
wretched  EXISTENCE!  What  is  life  widdout 
love?  Oh,  beau-chus  widder,  will  you-all  be 
mine?" 

As  Jeb  spoke  his  last  lines,  he  smirked  to  him- 
self and  said:  "Thar  now,  Jeb!  That'll  fetch 
her,  er  John's  all  wrong." 

Polly  and  Eleanor  looked  at  each  other  in  con- 
sternation. Who  was  the  widow — and  what  had 
John  to  do  with  this  proposal? 

Jeb  was  placing  the  little  paper  book  in  his 
breast  pocket  when  the  girls  looked  out  again. 
Then  he  picked  up  the  bucket  of  swill  and  ran 
over  to  feed  the  pigs.  His  audience,  up  in  the 
loft,  heard  him  still  reciting  various  love-thrilling 
lines  to  himself,  as  the  pigs  grunted  and  snorted 
and  ate  their  supper.  But  Eleanor  said  they'd 
better  get  away  before  Jeb  found  them. 


JEB'S  SUNDAY  NIGHT  OFF       171 

Polly  studied  her  brother's  face  keenly,  during 
supper,  but  John  seemed  as  free  from  guile  as 
any  babe.  So  after  the  table  was  cleared,  she 
went  up  to  him  and  whispered:  "Did  you  tell 
Jeb  to  propose  to  any  widow  you  know?" 

"Why?"     John's  eyes  twinkled  with  fun. 

"Because  he  was  behind  the  shed  all  afternoon, 
reciting  impassioned  lines  he  had  learned  in  a 
paper  book.  We  heard  him  say  that  that  would 
fetch  the  widow  or  you  wasn't  as  wise  as  you 
seemed  to  be." 

John  laughed  loudly,  and  merely  murmured: 
"We  ought  to  be  on  guard  to-night,  lest  Jeb  com- 
mit some  folly.  Better  watch  him,  Polly,  and 
see  where  he  goes,  eh?" 

"He  never  goes  anywhere  on  Sunday  nights. 
He  sits  on  the  terrace  by  the  crater  and  smokes 
his  pipe." 

"Well,  he  is  safe  there,  but  if  you  see  him  come 
by,  all  togged  out  in  his  church  clothes,  let  me 
know  and  I'll  see  that  he  conies  to  no  harm.  He 
may  be  a  bit  off,  you  know,"  John  lightly  tapped 
his  head  as  he  spoke. 

"Oh,  I  hope  not.  Jeb  is  such  a  good  hand. 
Father  would  never  know  what  to  do  without 
him.  Perhaps  we'd  best  tell  father  of  your  sus- 
picions," cried  Polly,  deeply  concerned. 


172  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

"No,  no !  Don't  bother  father.  I'll  take  care 
of  Jeb.  You  just  see  that  he  keeps  quiet,  to- 
night, wherever  he  goes  to  smoke  his  pipe." 

Innocent  Polly  then  sought  for  Eleanor,  who 
had  been  called  to  the  kitchen  by  Sary.  Polly 
found  her  giving  a  plaid  ribbon  and  a  corsage 
nosegay  to  Sary.  But  it  developed  that  the  maid 
had  higher  aspirations  than  ribbon  and  flowers. 

"Miss  Nolla,  Ah  see'd  a  figgered  dress 
a-hangin'  from  the  hook  in  yur  room,  one  day. 
No  one  never  wears  it,  an'  Ah  wuz  wonderin'  ef 
it  was  yur's,  er  Miss  Bob's,  er  Miss  Anne's?" 

"Oh,  that  is  a  striped  dimity  that  mother  must 
have  packed  by  mistake.  It  happens  to  be  one 
of  hers,  so  we  hung  it  back  in  the  corner  till  we 
go  home  again." 

"Ah  s'pose  yur  Maw  woulden  mind  much  ef 
she  lent  it  to  me  fer  to-night — eh?"  hinted 
Sary. 

"I  don't  suppose  mother  will  ever  think  of  it 
again,  as  it  is  last  year's  style,  anyway.  I'll  take 
the  risk  of  giving  it  to  you,  Sary,  if  you  promise 
never  to  let  Bob  know  where  it  went." 

"Oh,  Ah  shore  will  promise,  Miss  Nolla! 
And  Ah  kin  tell  you-all  Ah'il  be  the  happiest  gal 
in  the  West,  to-night!"  Sary  said,  giggling  like  a 
veritable  school-girl. 


JEB'S  SUNDAY  NIGHT  OFF       173 

Polly  watched  her  depart  with  the  coveted  dress 
over  her  arm,  then  she  turned  to  Eleanor.  "All 
the  help  are  going  crazy,  it  seems  to  me!" 

About  half  an  hour  later,  Sary  was  seen  steal- 
ing from  the  kitchen  door,  and  tip-toeing  over  the 
brick  pathway  towards  the  "Second-best"  ham- 
mock that  always  swung  behind  the  lilac  bushes. 
It  was  a  nice  little  retreat  for  any  one  wishing  to 
take  a  nap  on  a  sultry  afternoon,  but  Polly  had 
never  known  Sary  to  have  a  weakness  for  swing- 
ing. 

"Do  you  know,  Nolla,  if  I  didn't  have  to  watch 
for  Jeb,  I'd  just  love  to  follow  after  Sary  and 
see  what  she  is  up  to,"  said  Polly  to  Eleanor,  as 
both  girls  sat  alone  on  the  porch  steps. 

"Jeb!  Why,  I  saw  him  come  from  the  barn 
all  dressed  up  in  his  church  clothes.  He  turned 
down  the  Shrubbery  Walk,"  replied  Eleanor. 

"Did  he  have  his  pipe?"  asked  Polly,  anxiously. 

"No,  he  looked  around  at  every  step  as  if  to 
make  sure  no  one  was  following  him." 

"Dear  me !  I  promised  John  I'd  keep  my  eye 
on  him!"  cried  Polly,  distressed  beyond  words. 

"What's  the  matter?  I  can  show  you  where 
he  went,"  said  Eleanor,  comfortingly. 

So  she  led  Polly  to  the  place  where  Jeb  had 
left  the  road  and  turned  down  to  the  shrubbery 


174  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

walk.  The  two  girls  walked  over  the  soft  sod 
that  gave  forth  no  sound,  and  quite  suddenly  came 
upon  a  scene  that  caused  Eleanor  to  crush  her 
handkerchief  into  her  mouth  to  choke  her  laugh- 
ter, while  Polly  stood  speechless. 

Sary  sat  in  the  hammock,  one  foot  used  to 
propel  herself  gently  back  and  forth.  The  newly- 
acquired  striped  dress  was  such  a  tight  fit  for  her 
rubicund  form,  that  it  cracked  ominously  every 
time  the  wearer  took  a  deep  breath.  But  the 
short-coming  of  the  two  fronts  over  her  ample 
bosom  was  camouflaged  with  the  plaid  ribbon  and 
many  pins.  The  corsage  bouquet  was  tucked  high 
under  her  chin  where  it  would  show  most. 

It  was  not  very  dark  as  yet,  so  the  girls  could 
see  how  dreadfully  white  Sary  seemed  to  be,  and 
her  lips  were  startlingly  crimson.  Suddenly 
Eleanor  guessed  the  truth. 

"She's  gone  and  used  Bob's  powder  and  rouge ! 
Oh,  how  funny!" 

Then,  before  either  one  of  the  accidental  eaves- 
droppers could  say  another  word,  Sary  perked 
her  head  sideways,  like  a  hen  does  when  it  hears 
a  strange  sound.  She  quickly  frizzed  up  her  hair 
by  ruffing  it  backwards,  and  patted  the  ribbon 
on  her  waist-front,  then  gently  used  her  foot  again 
to  propel  the  hammock  back  and  forth. 


JEB'S  SUNDAY  NIGHT  OFF       175 

Gradually  it  dawned  upon  Polly  and  Eleanor 
what  all  this  meant !  They  could  see  Jeb  coming 
from  behind  the  lilac  bushes;  some  ten  feet  away 
from  the  swinger.  He  seemed  ill  at  ease,  and 
loosened  his  stiff  collar,  pulled  down  his  vest,  and 
cleared  his  throat  several  times. 

"Oh,  Poll!  He's  going  to  propose  to  the 
'widder' !"  whispered  Eleanor,  burying  her  face 
in  Polly's  back  to  stop  the  spasm  of  laughter. 

Polly  was  too  hypnotized  to  reply,  or  move, 
and  Jeb  soon  was  heard  to  say:  "Sary,  Ah  cum 
'cuz  you-all  invited  me  to  be  compny  t'night." 

"So  Ah  did,  Jeb.  Won't  you-all  sit  in  th' 
hammick  beside  me  ?"  came  from  Sary,  coyly. 

"It  broke  thru,  last  season,  Sary,  an  Ah  mended 
it.  But  Ah  ain't  shore  it'll  hoi'  enny  more'n  you." 
However,  Jeb  moved  two  or  three  feet  nearer  the 
hammock. 

"It's  a  fine  evenin',  Jeb,"  suggested  Sary,  as 
seriously  as  if  the  weather  was  the  subject  up- 
permost in  her  mind,  just  then. 

Jeb  gazed  up  and  around  as  if  to  verify  Sary's 
statement,  then  admitted,  slowly:  "Yeh,  it  'pears 
to  be  fine." 

Silence  reigned  for  several  moments,  then  Sary 
said  very  sweetly  (Eleanor  whispered  to  Polly 
that  she  must  have  had  a  mouthful  of  honey), 


176  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

"Ah  shore  am  glad  to  see  you,  Jeb.  Won't  you- 
all  sit  down  on  this  stool?" 

The  girls  then  saw  that  Sary  had  provided  the 
three-legged  milk-stool  for  her  visitor.  But  it  was 
too  close  to  Sary  for  Jeb's  peace  of  mind.  He 
reached  out  very  warily  and  caught  hold  of  one 
leg  of  the  stool,  and  pulled  it  towards  him.  Then 
he  sat  gingerly  on  the  edge  of  it. 

But  Sary  was  determined  to  carry  off  a  captive 
that  night,  or  waste  all  of  her  ammunition  in  the 
attempt. 

"Ah  jes'  loves  to  swing,  but  Ah  cain't  tech  the 
ground  easy  when  Ah'm  sittin'  back.  Would  you- 
all  mind  swingin'  me,  Jeb?" 

Jeb  got  up  slowly  from  his  stool  and  took  hold 
of  the  upper  end  strands  of  the  hammock.  He 
pulled  it  back  and  forth  a  few  times,  while  Sary 
smiled  alluringly  up  at  him.  Then  he  cleared  his 
throat  and  began  to  speak. 

"This  world  was  made  fur  love.  Oh,  what 
woul'  arth  be  widdout  de  flowers  of  love  to  par- 
fume  our  way?"  Jeb  coughed. 

Now  this  was  just  the  sort  of  romance  Sary 
had  always  dreamed  of  but  never  heard  before, 
and  she  sighed  heavily  as  her  visitor  coughed. 
If  Jeb  needed  encouragement,  she  was  not  the  one 
to  disappoint  him! 


JEB'S  SUNDAY  NIGHT  OFF       177 

He  gave  the  hammock  a  strong  tug  as  he  be- 
gan another  line.  Sary  had  to  catch  hold  of  the 
edges  to  prevent  herself  from  being  thrown  back- 
ward. 

"Man  wuz  not  made  to  live  alone.  Th'  Good 
Book  says  so.  What  so  glorious  ez  a  sweet  bride 
waitin'  t'  welcome  a  man  after  a  hard  day's  labor? 
What  man  is  thar  what  woulden  give  his  wealth 
of  all  Crows-see-us  fer  love?" 

Jeb  pronounced  the  unfamiliar  word  very  care- 
fully, but  Sary  had  never  heard  of  Croesus,  so 
it  mattered  not  how  Jeb  said  it.  But  Polly  and 
Eleanor  were  clasping  each  other  tightly  now,  to 
keep  from  making  a  sound  that  would  ruin  the 
entertainment. 

Again  Jeb  cleared  his  throat  with  difficulty  and 
pulled  at  the  hammock  as  if  he  was  trying  to  drag 
a  whale  from  the  deep  sea.  Sary  uttered  no  com- 
plaint, however,  even  though  her  neck  almost 
snapped  at  each  sudden  jerk.  She  was  wise 
enough  to  realize  that  the  momentous  time  had 
come  for  Jeb.  He  might  never  again  summon 
courage,  if  he  failed  to-night ! 

Without  further  warning,  then,  Jeb  began  his 
memorized  lines,  and  as  he  progressed  with  the 
"love  sonnet"  he  unconsciously  swung  the  ham- 
mock higher  and  higher. 


178  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

"Ef  Ah  wuzn't  shore  we-all  w'ar  made  fur  each 
other  Ah  wooden  be  ha'r  beggin'  fur  yur  heart  an' 
hand." 

A  long  and  mighty  pull  on  the  hammock  almost 
landed  Sary  out  in  the  grass,  but  she  clung  like  a 
vise  to  the  hempen  ropes. 

"Enny  one  kin  see  we-all  w'ar  made  fur  each 
other,  oh  darlin'  of  mah  heart!  Soul  of  mah 
soul!"  Jeb  coughed  violently  as  he  remembered 
he  was  two  paragraphs  ahead  in  his  speech.  Now 
he  couldn't  remember  what  went  just  before  that 
"soul  of  my  soul !"  but  he  knew  the  tragic  part  to 
perfection,  so  he  skipped  all  that  went  before  and 
ended  with: 

"Ef  you-all  refuse  me,  Ah  shall  end  this 
wretched  existence  in  life  widdout  love!  Oh, 
beauchus  maiden"  (strangling  as  he  realized  he 
should  have  said  "widder"  and  now  utterly  con- 
founded, he  said)  :  "Oh,  Sary!  be  mah  widder 
widdout  mah  love — NO,  Sary,  be  mah  wife 
widdout  my  widder.  Oh,  Sary,  Ah  don't  know 
what  Ah " 

In  his  frenzy,  Jeb  yanked  on  the  hammock  so 
manfully  that  the  mended  strands  suddenly  sun- 
dered and  Sary  was  unexpectedly  thrown  into  her 
suitor's  arms. 

Such  an  unforeseen  accident,  however,  found 


JEB'S  SUNDAY  NIGHT  OFF       179 

Sary  ready  with  presence  of  mind  to  meet  the 
emergency.  She  flung  her  powerful  arms  about 
Jeb's  slender  form  and  smacked  him  heartily  on 
the  lips.  The  dramatic  lover  then  trembled  and 
gasped  for  breath.  How  to  get  away  safely  was 
all  he  could  think  of.  But  Sary,  as  tenacious  in 
her  hold  as  "ivy  on  the  sturdy  oak,"  managed  to 
calm  her  lover's  fears. 

"Oh,  Jeb!  What  a  wooer  you-all  do  make! 
Ah  never  dreamed  a  man  could  talk  so  wonder- 
ful!" Sary  sighed  and  placed  her  head  down  upon 
Jeb's  shoulder. 

Now  had  Jeb  accepted  this  sweet  praise  and 
been  satisfied  therewith,  his  wooing  need  not  have 
ended  so  abruptly,  but  manlike,  he  wanted  to 
hear  added  words  of  flattery  about  himself,  so 
he  sat  down  on  the  three-legged  stool,  and  drew 
the  over-willing  Sary  upon  his  knee. 

"Ah  forgot  to  say  half  what  is  in  mah  soul, 
Sary,"  he  began,  as  his  lines  came  back  to  him. 
"Oh,  Ah  must  tell  you-all  what  joy  you  fill  me 
wid,  when  you  consent  to  listen  to  mah  cause " 

In  leaning  back  to  emphasize  his  speech  with 
an  out-flung  arm,  Jeb  lost  his  balance,  and  the 
stool  being  treacherous  on  its  three  legs,  promptly 
turned  over  and  sent  both  lovers  from  ecstasy 
down  to  earth.  As  Sary  and  Jeb  managed  to  get 


i8o  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

upon  their  feet,  they  thought  they  heard  sounds 
of  smothered  laughter  and  scampering  feet  over 
the  brick  walk,  but  when  they  got  from  behind 
the  lilac  bushes  to  reconnoiter,  everything  between 
the  kitchen  and  the  Shrubbery  Walk  was  silent  as 
the  tomb. 


CHAPTER  X 

A  TRIP   TO   BUFFALO    PARK 

WORD  was  received  through  Jeb,  who  met  Jake 
at  Oak  Creek,  that  Mrs.  Carew  would  spend  the 
week-end  at  Camp  to  welcome  the  party  from  the 
ranch;  so  the  young  folks  at  Pebbly  Pit  eagerly 
prepared  for  the  trip  to  Buffalo  Park.  The  pan- 
niers were  packed  with  luncheon  for  the  riders, 
besides  the  cakes  and  homemade  pies  which  Mrs. 
Brewster  sent  to  the  boys  in  camp. 

At  dawn  on  Saturday  morning,  the  party 
started,  Mrs.  Brewster  watching  them  ride  down 
the  trail  until  they  disappeared  back  of  Rainbow 
Cliffs.  Then  she  went  back  to  attend  to  her 
household  duties. 

Polly  rode  Noddy  as  usual,  and  Eleanor  had 
Choko.  The  other  four  members  of  the  party 
rode  horses,  but  one  extra  burro,  Nigger,  was 
taken  to  carry  the  luggage.  The  trail  from  Bear 
Forks  across  the  mountain-side  was  very  rough, 

181 


1 82  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

being  seldom  used;  most  riders,  going  to  Buf- 
falo Park,  took  the  old  worn  trail  that  ran  from 
Silver  Creek. 

Finally,  the  going  was  found  to  be  so  steep  that 
it  was  deemed  best  to,  attach  the  pack-burro  to 
John's  horse,  by  means  of  a  rope.  This  would 
necessitate  the  burro  following  after  John's  horse 
instead  of  wandering  away  in  the  maze  of  forest 
trees. 

But  sometimes,  these  little  burros  get  stubborn 
when  they  are  made  to  follow  in  the  rear  of  a 
horse,  and  it  was  so  with  Nigger.  He  acted  like 
a  sulky  child,  and  made  the  girls  laugh  at  his  con- 
trary behavior.  He  seemed  to  have  lost  all  in- 
dividual ambition,  and  made  John's  horse  drag 
him  at  the  unusually  hard  places  in  the  trail. 

They  had  been  climbing  steadily  for  two  hours 
and  hoped  soon  to  reach  the  clearer  trail  that  ran 
direct  to  Buffalo  Park.  But  the  trees  grew  so 
closely  together,  now,  that  they  offered  obstruc- 
tions in  every  direction  the  horses  went.  Some- 
times it  was  even  necessary  for  the  riders  to  dis- 
mount and  follow  after  the  horses  to  eliminate 
the  extra  width  caused  by  stirrups  and  legs. 

Nigger's  panniers  were  packed  with  food,  cook- 
ing utensils  to  use  while  on  the  trail,  and  rifles. 
This  bulky  roll  projected  over  a  foot  on  either 


A  TRIP  TO  BUFFALO  PARK       183 

side  of  him,  often  creating  a  "blockade"  in  the 
narrow  going  between  trees. 

John's  horse,  being  unable  to  read  blazes  as 
easily  as  his  rider  could,  would  choose  the  wrong 
turn  now  and  then,  sulkily  followed  by  Nigger. 
Then  the  horse  would  come  to  a  spot  impossible 
to  pass  through  and  would  decide  to  back  out. 
Nigger,  with  his  clumsy  pack  and  grouchy  man- 
ner, stood  and  fairly  laughed  at  such  times.  Polly 
and  Eleanor  enjoyed  these  funny  experiences 
thoroughly;  but  John  felt  annoyed,  as  he  wished 
to  appear  his  best  before  Anne,  and  how  can  a 
young  gallant  impress  his  lady-love  favorably 
when  his  horse  is  making  a  fool  of  itself? 

While  Nigger  and  Snowball  (John's  horse  was 
white)  were  engaged  in  disentangling  themselves 
from  one  of  these  snarls,  the  other  riders  went 
ahead.  Finding  John  was  not  immediately  be- 
hind, they  halted  and  turned  to  watch  him  get  his 
two  steeds  straightened  out  and  going  again. 

AH  was  serene  once  more  and  Snowball  started 
briskly  up  the  trail,  but  unfortunately,  she  went 
about  a  tree  on  one  side  of  the  trail  while  Nigger 
insisted  upon  choosing  the  other  side.  Both  were 
suddenly  yanked  up  when  the  tie-rope  tautened 
about  the  tree,  so  that  John  was  almost  thrown 
out  of  the  saddle.  Neither  beast  would  give  in 


i  84  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

but  tugged  stubbornly  to  make  the  other  waive  his 
right  of  way,  until  finally,  John  had  to  jump  down 
again,  and  compel  Snowball  to  walk  back  and 
around  the  tree  on  the  right  side,  where  the  burro 
waited. 

Nigger  stood  with  neck  stretched  and  his  mouth 
half-open,  while  his  eyes  gleamed  impishly.  John 
roared  at  the  expression  on  the  burro's  face,  as 
true  to  a  malicious  grin  as  ever  a  human  could 
produce  it.  Then  they  resumed  the  climb. 

But  Nigger  had  found  a  new  way  to  tantalize 
Snowball.  He  would  step  upon  a  stone  and  allow 
it  to  trip  him.  This  would  make  his  pack  strike 
the  tree  on  the  side  he  rolled.  Then  the  tree, 
resisting  the  impact,  would  slew  him  back  again. 
Naturally,  every  time  he  performed  this  way, 
Snowball  was  unceremoniously  yanked  up  too,  and 
this  sudden  stopping  interfered  with  John's  con- 
versation with  Anne. 

After  Polly  had  laughed  herself  weak  over 
Nigger's  clever  performances,  she  called  to  John. 
"No  use !  You'll  have  to  give  Nig  his  freedom ! 
He'll  land  Snowball  in  kingdom  come  if  you  keep 
him  tied." 

So  wise  little  Nigger  was  freed  once  more,  and 
thereafter  he  walked  as  circumspectly  as  any  good 
burro  should.  But  the  going  was  better,  too, 


A  TRIP  TO  BUFFALO  PARK       185 

with  the  trail  running  through  miles  and  miles  of 
dark  green  forests,  patterned  here  and  there  with 
golden  stretches  of  mesa  and  parks. 

"Are  you  sure  you  know  the  trail,  Polly?" 
asked  John,  as  he  gazed  about  at  the  unfamiliar 
path. 

"Oh,  yes,  I've  gone  this  way  lots  of  times  when 
Mr.  Montresor  lived  in  the  cabin  where  Carew's 
men  are  now  camping." 

"Well,  if  it  is  much  farther,  then  I  say  we'd 
best  halt  for  something  to  eat." 

"I  will  second  that  motion  whether  it  is  far  or 
near.  We  had  best  have  a  bite,  as  we  will  have 
to  wait  for  the  crew's  dinner-time  when  we  ar- 
rive in  camp,"  added  Tom  Latimer. 

So  the  riders  dismounted  and  hastily  prepared 
a  luncheon.  When  they  were  ready  to  proceed 
on  the  way,  Nigger  found  his  pack  much  lighter 
than  before,  so  he,  too,  was  delighted  to  have 
had  the  humans  stop  for  lunch. 

It  was  past  noon  before  the  visitors  reached 
Carew's  Camp,  but  once  there,  they  were  given  a 
hearty  welcome  by  every  one.  Cookee  had  been 
mixing  and  stirring  viands  ever  since  the  break- 
fast had  been  cleared  away,  and  now  he  was  ready 
to  smile  satisfactorily  at  results,  for  he  was  going 
to  give  these  guests  a  rare  meal  that  day. 


1 86  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

Mrs.  Carew  was  a  Chicago  lady  and,  for  once, 
Barbara  was  happy,  as  she  found  her  hostess  knew 
several  people  that  the  Maynards  felt  were  ex- 
alted enough  to  be  classed  "in  their  set." 

As  soon  as  their  section  master  gave  them  the 
afternoon's  vacation,  Jim  Latimer  and  Kenneth 
appropriated  Polly  and  Eleanor,  and  the  four 
started  off  on  fresh  horses  from  the  corral,  for 
an  excursion. 

Jim  wanted  to  ride  to  one  of  the  peaks  where 
they  had  surveyed  that  week,  and  show  the  girls 
the  far-off  desert  that  stretched  for  miles  and 
miles  between  Buffalo  Park  and  the  Lincoln 
Memorial  Highway. 

The  trail  was  well  defined,  as  the  crew  had 
traveled  it  twice  a  day  that  week,  and  had  worn 
down  cactus  and  sage-brush. 

The  four  finally  reached  the  pinnacle  where  the 
gray  expanse  of  sand  could  be  seen  stretching  out 
to  meet  the  blue  sky  on  the  horizon,  and  Jim 
laughingly  remarked:  "Ken  and  I  came  near 
finding  a  sandy  grave  there  the  other  day." 

"How?"  eagerly  asked  the  girls. 

"Why,  we  were  sent  with  our  superior,  to  tie 
up  a  line  at  the  edge  of  the  desert  down  there, 
and  having  done  so,  one  of  the  crew  saw  a  fine 
little  bit  of  water  and  a  few  trees  growing  about 


A  TRIP  TO  BUFFALO  PARK      187 

It,  not  more  than  half-a-mile  from  where  we  were 
working. 

"We  concluded  it  would  make  an  admirable 
place  to  rest  and  have  lunch,  and  give  the  horses 
a  good  drink,  too,  at  the  same  time.  So  we  all 
started  over  the  sand  to  enjoy  the  unusual  oasis. 

"Well,  we  kept  on  going  and  going,  but  the 
darn  old  oasis  seemed  as  far  away  as  ever.  Sud- 
denly, I  thought  I  was  going  queer  in  my  head, 
because  it  slowly  vanished  like  mist.  I  rubbed 
my  eyes  and  called  on  Ken  to  verify  the  fact. 
Then  you  should  have  heard  the  men  swear! 
Phew!" 

Both  boys  laughed  as  they  recalled  the  irrita- 
tion of  the  men  who  found  they  had  been  riding 
for  a  mirage — And  lunch  farther  off  than  ever. 

"However,  we  saw  a  gigantic  bowlder  of  lava 
and  sand  rear  its  head  from  the  desert  a  short 
distance  off,  so  we  decided  to  make  for  that  and 
see  if  there  was  a  crevice  in  its  side  where  we 
might  find  shelter  from  the  baking  sun. 

"We  left  the  horses  hobbled  while  we  scram- 
bled up  its  sides  to  look  for  any  projection  that 
would  cast  a  shadow  for  us. 

"The  men  separated  when  we  started  to  climb, 
but  we  all  met  at  the  top  without  having  found 
any  shade.  The  wind  that  blew  across  the  desert, 


1 88  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

was  comparatively  cool,  however,  so  we  sat  on 
the  uncomfortable  spikes  of  lava  and  planned 
where  we  might  have  something  to  eat. 

"Ken  turned  to  speak  to  me,  and  a  great  mass 
of  shale  broke  away  from  his  feet  and  rolled 
down  the  steep  sides  of  the  crag.  But  he  man- 
aged to  catch  himself  from  slipping.  Then  we 
began  breaking  off  fragments  of  shale  and  tried 
to  see  who  could  throw  it  the  farthest  out  on  the 
desert.  We  laid  wagers,  and  one  of  the  party 
said  he  would  go  down,  after  a  bit,  and  mark  the 
ones  that  were  prize-winners.  That  made  us 
laugh  as  no  one  would  ever  be  able  to  find  any 
individual  chunk  of  shale  out  on  that  wild  place. 

"The  breeze  that  had  been  blowing  rather  too 
strong,  now  became  stronger,  and  then  Prang, 
who  was  in  charge  of  us,  that  day,  shaded  his 
eyes  with  a  hand  and  stared  off  at  the  horizon. 
We  all  gazed  in  the  same  direction,  but  we  were 
not  experienced  enough  to  know  what  it  was  he 
saw. 

"  'My  God,  boys !  slide  down  this  crag  as  fast 
as  you  can — that's  a  storm  blowing  across  the 
sands.  It  will  hit  us  in  a  few  moments.  Grab 
the  horses  or  they'll  bolt  and  we'll  all  be  lost  on 
the  desert!'" 

"Gee!  didn't  we  get  down  those  awful  sides. 


A  TRIP  TO  BUFFALO  PARK       189 

Ken  slid  more  than  half-way  down,  then  he  lost 
his  grasp  on  the  side.  His  back  and  arms  are 
all  scraped  now,  from  the  way  he  rolled  the  rest 
of  the  way." 

The  girls  sympathized  with  Ken,  but  he  laughed 
away  the  thought  that  he  had  been  too  tender  to 
stand  such  a  test. 

"Well,  most  of  us  got  down  and  had  caught 
our  horses  before  the  sand-storm  struck  us,  but 
two  of  our  crowd  had  to  stumble  through  the  ter- 
rific storm  that  blinded  them.  Had  we  not  kept 
on  calling  and  shouting  to  direct  them,  they  would 
have  wandered  away  and  been  buried. 

"It  was  an  awful  experience,  but  now  that  it  is 
over,  I'm  glad  we  had  it.  I  will  have  something 
to  brag  about  when  I'm  at  college,  this  Fall." 

Ken  laughed.  "I'd  rather  not  brag  than  to  go 
through  such  a  hair-raising  time  again." 

"Do  both  of  you  boys  intend  going  to  college?" 
asked  Eleanor. 

"Yes ;  we've  gone  through  school  together  since 
we  were  little  shavers.  And  that's  quite  a  record 
for  boys  in  New  York,  where  folks  are  always 
moving  from  one  district  to  another,"  replied 
Jim. 

"I  believe  your  brother  Tom  said  you  were  go- 
ing to  Yale?"  continued  Eleanor. 


190  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

"We  will,  if  we  pass  the  tests.  I'm  sure  Ken 
will,  but  I'm  not  so  sure  of  myself." 

"Now — don't  belittle  yourself.  You  know  you 
will  pass,"  added  Kenneth. 

"I'm  sorry  you  both  will  be  away  from  home, 
because  Polly  and  I  expect  to  attend  school  in 
New  York  this  Winter,"  remarked  Eleanor. 

"Me?  School  in  New  York?"  cried  Polly,  as- 
tonished. 

"Why,  yes,  of  course !  Didn't  you  know  what 
was  in  my  mind  when  I  decided  I  would  like  to  go 
to  New  York  with  Anne  Stewart?" 

"But  that  doesn't  mean  I'm  going  there!"  ex- 
claimed Polly. 

"Of  course  you  are.  I  don't  want  to  go  with- 
out you,  so  I  shall  scheme  to  win  your  folks  over 
to  my  way  of  thinking." 

"Well,  all  I  can  say,  is  this :  If  you  win  them 
over  to  see  how  important  it  is  for  me  to  go  to 
school  in  New  York,  you  are  a  wizard — that's 
all!"  declared  Polly,  laughingly. 

"Your  laugh  sounds  dubious,  but  I'll  show  you, 
pretty  soon." 

"Now,  if  you  two  girls  should  find  yourselves 
in  New  York,  we  will  have  our  folks  meet  you 
and  pilot  you  through  the  wilderness.  It's  worse 


A  TRIP  TO  BUFFALO  PARK       191 

than  out  here  on  the  mountains,  you  know," 
laughed  Jim. 

"In  case  I  don't  pass  for  college,  I  won't  mind 
so  much,  as  long  as  you  girls  will  be  in  the  city 
to  console  me,"  added  Kenneth,  gallantly. 

They  laughed.  "We  won't  waste  much  time 
consoling  any  one,  I  can  tell  you,"  added  Polly. 

"No ;  Polly  and  I  are  going  to  study  some  pro- 
fession, you  know,  and  begin  business  as  soon  as 
we  complete  our  education." 

"What?"  exclaimed  Jim,  surprised  to  hear 
such  young  girls  plan  for  a  business  life. 

"Yep!  Polly  is  just  daffy  over  interior  deco- 
rating, and  since  she  showed  me  all  her  magazines 
and  other  books  on  it,  I  am  crazy  about  it,  too." 

"But  you  don't  have  to  study  that!"  declared 
Kenneth. 

"That  shows  how  little  a  man  knows  about  it. 
Why,  not  only  must  a  decorator — a  real  one,  we 
mean — know  all  about  periods  in  architecture 
and  furnishings  of  all  kinds,  but  she  must  know 
at  a  glance,  whether  an  object  is  genuine  antique  or 
a  counterfeit,"  explained  Eleanor,  glad  to  impress 
her  male  friends  with  her  understanding  of  what 
is  essentially  a  woman's  profession. 

"Besides  that,"  added  Polly,  "a  good  interior 


i92  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

decorator  must  know  the  name  of  a  painter  of 
pictures, — whether  an  old  master  or  a  modern 
artist.  Not  an  engraving  or  etching  shown  but 
the  good  decorator  ought  to  be  able  to  say  who 
did  it,  and  name  its  date. 

"There  are  lots  of  counterfeit  antique  china 
sold  to-day,  but  a  good  decorator  can  tell  instantly 
whether  it  is  real  antique  or  not. 

"Besides  china  and  pictures,  one  must  be  able 
to  name  a  rug — its  qualities  and  value,  at  a  glance. 
As  for  draperies  and  wall-hangings,  well!  It  all 
has  to  be  thoroughly  learned,"  said  Polly. 

"I  always  thought  a  man  took  up  interior 
decorating  just  because  he  happened  to  have  been 
an  upholsterer  or  fresco  painter.  I  never  knew 
there  was  any  studying  to  be  done,  first,"  said 
Jim. 

"You  didn't,  eh!  Well  then,  let  me  tell  you 
this  much;  Polly  and  I  intend  to  use  our  money 
from  the  mine,  to  put  us  both  through  school  in 
New  York.  Any  other  city  would  do,  I  suppose, 
only  Anne  Stewart  will  be  there,  and  I  never  can 
study  under  any  one  else!  So  I  have  to  attend 
class  in  New  York,"  Eleanor  spoke  with  the 
greatest  assurance  that  all  she  said  had  already 
been  agreed  to  by  Polly's  family. 

"Then  when  Polly  and  I  have  had  a  year  or 


A  TRIP  TO  BUFFALO  PARK       193 

two  with  Anne,  we  will  take  a  special  course  in 
some  one  of  the  best  schools  on  the  subject.  This 
course  finished,  we  propose  going  to  Europe  to 
study  Italian,  French,  Spanish,  and  English 
periods  and  styles.  If  we  have  an  extra  year  or 
so,  to  spare,  we  might  go  to  Japan  and  Egypt, 
as  I  just  adore  those  two  lands." 

"W-h-y!  Eleanor!  You  never  mentioned  a 
word  of  this  to  me  before!  Who  told  you  we 
could  go?"  gasped  Polly. 

Eleanor  laughed  merrily.  "You  big  innocent! 
Why,  /  just  told  you  myself — that  we  were  going 
abroad." 

"If  I  ever  manage  to  break  away  from  Pebbly 
Pit  after  the  awful  speech  I  made  recently,  I'll 
be  lucky,  and  let  New  York  or  Europe  alone!" 
laughed  Polly. 

"You  never  would  have  had  gumption  to  speak 
as  you  did,  Polly,  if  it  hadn't  been  for  my  train- 
ing you.  This  is  what  I  have  done  to  you — 
you  are  growing  to  be  more  independent  of 
others." 

Eleanor  smiled  self-complacently  at  Polly,  but 
the  latter  retorted:  "I  owe  you  nothing  on  an 
exchange,  Nolla,  because  you  must  admit  that  I 
have  filled  you  up  with  ideas  you  never  dreamed 
of  before  you  came  to  the  ranch!" 


H94  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

"Shake,  old  girll"  laughed  Eleanor,  holding 
out  her  hand. 

r  "But  about  New  York — girls.  It  would  be 
great  if  you  can  fix  it.  Ken  and  I  will  be  home 
every  holiday,  and  perhaps  we  can  run  down 
from  New  Haven,  now  and  then,  over  Sundays," 
remarked  Jim,  eagerly. 

Eleanor  held  up  an  assuring  hand,  as  she 
nodded  her  wise  little  head  knowingly  and  said: 
"Leave  it  to  Nolla,  boys!" 

They  laughed  and  agreed  that  there  was  no 
one  else  that  could  arrange  affairs  any  better! 

Polly  sat  mute,  for  she  wondered  if  it  ever 
would  come  true — what  Eleanor  had  planned 
about  Europe.  In  her  wildest  fancies  she  had 
never  dared  allow  her  thought  to  outline  such 
possibilities.  But  here  was  a  harum-scarum 
friend  who  seemed  to  get  everything  she  wanted 
by  merely  saying,  "We  must  have  it,  you  know!" 

"I  guess  we'd  better  be  starting  back  to  camp," 
suggested  Kenneth,  looking  up  at  the  sun. 

"Yes,  it  will  take  us  fully  an  hour,  riding 
down,"  agreed  Jim. 

So  they  helped  the  girls  into  their  saddles,  and 
soon  all  four  were  having  a  good  time  going 
back  to  Buffalo  Park. 


CHAPTER  XI 

A  WILD-WEST  COUNTY  FAIR 

THAT  same  night  while  at  supper,  Mrs.  Carew 
asked  her  guests  if  they  had  ever  visited  one  of 
the  western  celebrations. 

"Polly  says  she  has,  but  we  have  never  seen 
one,"  replied  Anne,  eagerly. 

"Well,  Oak  Creek  is  going  to  have  its  annual 
fair,  or  celebration,  two  weeks  from  Monday. 
It  generally  lasts  for  three  days,  and  they  have 
all  sorts  of  stunts  there.  You-all  must  be  sure  to 

go." 

"The  Boss  says  we  can  have  a  day  off  and  go, 
too !"  declared  Jim. 

"I  wish  it  would  happen  to  come  on  the  day 
you  girls  go,"  added  Kenneth,  anxiously. 

"We'll  try  and  plan  it  that  way.  Maybe  we 
will  go  to  each  day's  show,"  quickly  said  Eleanor. 

"Maybe  you  can  find  out  from  Mrs.  Carew 
what  day  her  husband  thinks  we  can  have,"  ven- 
tured Jim,  in  a  whisper. 

Eleanor  nodded;  then  she  turned  to  John  and 
195 


i96  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

told  him  what  they  wanted  to  know  from  Mrs. 
Carew. 

Thus  it  was  learned  that  the  survey  Crew  was 
to  be  given  Tuesday  and  Wednesday — as  it  would 
take  almost  half  a  day  to  travel  to  Oak  Creek, 
and  another  half  day  to  get  back  to  camp.  The 
boys  gave  a  wild  hurrah  when  they  heard  this 
good  news,  and  immediately  planned  to  start  from 
camp  directly  after  midnight  Monday  so  as  to  en- 
joy a  full  day  at  the  fair. 

After  good-bys  were  said,  and  the  Pebbly  Pit 
party  were  ready  to  start  on  the  homeward  trail, 
Jim  whispered  to  Polly  and  Eleanor,  "Now  don't 
forget!  Ken  and  I  have  a  date  with  you  two  at 
the  Fair,  Tuesday  and  Wednesday." 

And  the  girls  laughingly  promised  to  make  a 
note  in  their  social  calendar  book. 

The  two  weeks  intervening  between  the  visit  to 
Buffalo  Park,  and  the  celebration  at  Oak  Creek, 
passed  rapidly,  for  John  and  Tom  had  a  new 
excursion  planned  for  each  day.  Of  course, 
Polly  and  Eleanor  were  members  of  these  picnics, 
so  they  almost  forgot  about  the  fair  until  a  day, 
or  so,  before  the  time. 

"We-all  attend  the  fair,  you  know,  and  take 
our  camp  outfit  with  us,"  said  Mr.  Brewster,  at 
supper  on  Sunday  evening. 


A  WILD-WEST  COUNTY  FAIR     197 

"Aren't  there  any  restaurants  where  we  can 
dine?"  asked  Barbara. 

"Well,  there  is  Snake-Bill's  place  where  you  get 
hash  piled  up  with  your  pie  and  odds  or  ends, 
all  on  an  inch-thick  dish.  Then  there  is  the 
Rocky  Mountain  Cafie — as  every  one  calls  it, — 
but  ladies  are  not  welcome,  there.  Neither  of 
these  places  will  appeal  to  you  girls,  Ah'm  sure," 
explained  Sam  Brewster. 

"Oh,  no !  They  have  no  idea  of  what  it  is 
like,  Sam,"  declared  Mrs.  Brewster,  holding  up 
both  hands  in  horror  at  the  very  idea. 

"Will  we  start  early  in  the  morning?"  now 
asked  Eleanor,  wondering  if  they  would  be  on 
time  to  keep  their  engagements. 

"Oh,  we  will  leave  here  about  one  or  two 
o'clock,"  replied  Mr.  Brewster,  nonchalantly. 

"One  or  two!"  cried  Barbara,  aghast,  thinking 
he  meant  A.  M. 

"Yes,  then  we  will  arrive  about  four  or  five. 
By  the  time  we  have  the  tents  pitched  and  every- 
thing in  tip-top  working  order,  it  will  be  supper- 
time.  There  won't  be  so  much  going  on  the  first 
night,  you  know,  but  we  will  be  there  for  Tues- 
day's early  games." 

"Oh,  my  goodness !  You  don't  mean  we  shall 
camp  over  night?"  exclaimed  Barbara. 


198  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

"Of  course !  We  could  never  travel  back  and 
forth  each  day,  as  it  is  a  long  ride  and  tough 
roads  for  the  horses  to  pull  a  heavy  ranch-wagon," 
returned  Mr.  Brewster. 

"I  don't  see  why  you  won't  have  automobiles 
out  here!  It  would  not  cost  much  to  have  a 
Ford,  or  some  other  cheap  affair,  but  the  con- 
venience and  time  you'd  save — my!"  said  Bar- 
bara. 

"An  auto !  Can  you  see  us  driving  a  car  over 
such  awful  roads  as  there  are  for  miles  around 
Oak  Creek?  To  say  nothing  of  the  wild  trails 
that  go  to  Pebbly  Pit  and  other  far-off  ranches," 
said  John. 

"Whenever  there  is  a  rain,  or  in  winter,  the 
roads  are  impassable,  you  know,  Bob,"  added 
Mrs.  Brewster.  "I'd  love  to  have  a  car  just  for 
fun,  but  there  is  no  pleasure  in  riding  it  around 
the  farm  where  I  know  every  foot  of  ground. 
And  excepting  on  our  own  land,  there  are  no  de- 
cent roads." 

"I  never  thought  of  that!"  admitted  Barbara. 

"So  we  make  the  best  of  things,  and  ride  to 
the  fair  in  a  wagon  that  will  hold  a  village  of 
people,"  concluded  Polly. 

"I  think  it  will  be  heaps  of  fun  to  camp  right 


A  WILD-WEST  COUNTY  FAIR     199 

in  town  where  crowds  of  other  folks  are  camp- 
ing," said  Eleanor,  giggling. 

"It  is.  You  never  know  who  your  next-door 
neighbor  is  going  to  be,"  laughed  Polly.  "Once, 
we  camped  right  next  to  a  horse-thief  who  was 
wanted  by  the  sheriff.  My,  but  we  had  an  ex- 
citing time  when  he  crawled  into  mother's  bed  and 
hid!" 

"Polly !  You  forgot  to  say  that  this  happened 
while  we  were  at  the  fair  and  he  was  driven  from 
his  own  tent,"  hastily  added  Mrs.  Brewster,  while 
the  others  laughed  heartily  at  Polly's  omission. 

At  these  yearly  events,  every  workhand  on  a 
ranch  went  to  the  fair,  whether  the  cattle  starved 
or  not.  But  with  Mr.  Brewster's  help,  it  was  so 
planned  that  half  of  them  went  from  Monday 
morning  until  Tuesday  noon,  and  then  the  other 
half  went  from  Tuesday  noon  until  Wednesday 
night.  In  this  way  each  side  had  plenty  of  time 
to  spend  their  hoardings,  and  to  drink  all  the 
"Sure  Death"  whisky  that  could  be  had  in  Oak 
Creek. 

The  great  ranch-wagon  rumbled  away  Monday 
noon,  and  a  gay  party  it  carried,  too.  The  tents 
were  tightly  rolled  and  tied  to  the  sides,  while 
rolls  of  bedding  and  hampers  of  food  were 


200  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

stacked  under  the  high  front  seat.  Hard  wooden 
seats  were  clamped  to  each  side  for  the  travelers 
to  sit  upon. 

Tom  Latimer  and  John  kept  every  one  laugh- 
ing, so  that  no  one  complained  of  the  uncomfort- 
able seats  that  seemed  to  grow  harder  the  nearer 
the  travelers  came  to  Oak  Creek. 

Then  the  party  drew  near  their  objective.  But 
such  a  different  Oak  Creek  from  its  usual  sleepy 
appearance!  The  entire  countryside,  outside  of 
the  settlement  proper,  was  dotted  with  canvas 
tents,  and  campers  were  running  back  and  forth. 
Just  to  the  right  of  the  town  stood  a  vast  tent, 
like  a  circus  canvas;  and  in  line  with  it  were  sev- 
eral smaller  ones. 

"That  larger  one  is  where  all  the  exhibits  are 
shown  and  where  the  contests  take  place,  such  as 
eating  pan-cakes,  shoveling  coal,  testing  mining 
tools,  and  other  tame  games,"  explained  John. 

"Do  they  bust  the  bronchos  there,  too?"  asked 
Eleanor. 

"No,  that,  and  the  trick  riding,  is  done  out  in 
the  ring,"  replied  Mr.  Brewster. 

While  the  men  pitched  the  tents  and  carried 
the  folding  cots  from  the  wagon,  Sary  unpacked 
her  meager  cooking  outfit,  and  Mrs.  Brewster  ar- 
ranged the  hampers  in  a  safe  place  in  her  tent. 


A  WILD-WEST  COUNTY  FAIR     201 

Eleanor  and  Polly  stood  watching  the  crowds  of 
incoming  ranchers  drive  by,  all  on  the  look-out 
for  a  good  camping-site. 

"I  do  hope  the  boys  from  Buffalo  Park  will 
be  in  time  to  find  a  place  near  us,"  whispered 
Polly. 

"Yes,  but  it  looks  now,  as  if  there  wouldn't  be 
an  inch  of  room  left  after  to-night,"  returned 
Eleanor. 

Mr.  Brewster  then  joined  them.  "Well,  girls, 
want  to  go  with  me  to  have  a  look  over  the  fair- 
grounds? To-morrow  you  will  be  escorted  by 
younger  chaps,  I  suppose;  but  they  won't  be  able 
to  explain  things  any  better  than  I  can." 

"Oh  yes,  Daddy!  Let's  go,"  cried  Polly, 
eagerly. 

As  it  was  all  new  to  Eleanor,  she  also  wanted 
to  go,  so  the  three  found  a  way  between  the 
tents  that  had  sprung  up,  since  they  drove  in  from 
the  trail  and  had  selected  their  own  site. 

Every  one  was  merry  and  good-natured,  and 
many  a  joke  was  exchanged  between  people  who 
might  be  master  and  servant  at  home,  but  at  the 
Celebration,  they  all  were  equals. 

Mr.  Brewster  pointed  out  where  the  races 
would  take  place,  and  where  the  wild  horse-break- 
ing generally  was  held.  He  told  Eleanor  that  a 


202  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

purse  of  five  hundred  dollars  was  always  made 
up  by  collections,  and  given  to  the  man  who  was 
able  to  tame  the  worst  outlaw  horse  of  the  year. 

Then  the  girls  were  taken  to  the  booths  where 
refreshments  were  served.  Sam  Brewster  or- 
dered three  ice-cream  cones  and  three  sodas.  He 
also  bought  two  boxes  of  candy  for  the  girls. 

"Let's  have  ice-cream  sodas  instead  of  soda 
and  cones,"  suggested  Eleanor. 

"They  can't  mix  ice-cream  sodas,  out  here," 
explained  Polly.-  "So  we  buy  cones  and  mix  our 
own  when  we  want  a  New  York  drink." 

Eleanor  laughed.  "Isn't  that  funny!  It's 
just  as  easy!" 

So  they  emptied  their  cones  into  their  soda 
water  and  stirred  the  drink  with  a  spoon.  But 
Eleanor  learned  that  the  western  people  would 
do  certain  things  their  way,  and  no  one  could 
convince  them  that  it  was  much  easier  to  accom- 
plish the  task  a  different  way. 

The  cots  were  hard  as  rocks  but  every  one  fell 
asleep  without  complaints  that  night,  and  in  the 
morning  the  mad  babel  of  sounds  roused  the 
campers  without  alarm  clocks.  As  Tuesday  was 
a  great  day  at  the  fair,  no  time  was  lost  by  steal- 
ing an  extra  wink.  Breakfast  out  of  the  way, 
the  entire  party  started  for  the  Fair  Grounds. 


A  WILD-WEST  COUNTY  FAIR     203 

"I  wonder  where  the  boys  are?"  whispered 
Polly. 

"We'll  never  find  them  in  this  mob,"  returned 
Eleanor. 

"They  said  we  were  to  meet  at  the  Bridal  Con- 
test— but  where  is  that?"  wondered  Polly. 

"Let's  ask  Tom  Latimer;  we'll  tell  him  Jim 
is  going  to  be  there  at  ten  o'clock." 

Tom  heard  the  girls  and  laughed:  "But  why 
at  the  Bridal  Contest  tent?  Why  not  at  the  coal- 
heaving  contest?" 

"Perhaps  the  boys  thought  there  wouldn't  be 
such  a  crowd  at  the  Bridal,"  ventured  Polly, 
guilelessly. 

Tom  and  Eleanor  laughed,  and  the  former 
said:  "Well,  I'll  see  that  you  two  get  there  in 
ample  time  for  the  Bridal." 

Long  before  ten  o'clock,  John  and  Anne  had 
disappeared,  and  that  left  Tom  to  the  sweet  mercy 
of  Barbara.  He  clung  desperately  to  Polly  and 
Eleanor  until  it  was  time  to  take  them  to  the 
Bridal  Contest,  and  then  he  begged  Mrs.  Brews- 
ter  to  take  care  of  Barbara  while  he  was  absent 
with  the  girls. 

Mrs.  Brewster  understood  that  Tom  did  not 
care  for  the  young  lady's  company,  and  she  said 
in  a  low  tone:  "I  would  feel  easier  if  I  thought 


204  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

those  four  young  people  had  a  sensible  head  to 
look  after  them  in  this  great  multitude,  Tom." 

Tom  looked  at  her,  but  she  seemed  innocent 
of  any  hidden  meaning;  so  he  replied  fervently: 
"If  you  will  tell  Polly  this>  I  will  be  only  too 
happy  to  be  the  'head'  they  need." 

So  Tom  really  acted  as  "Official  Guide"  that 
day  and,  incidentally,  paid  all  the  bills  for  the 
young  celebrators.  This  suited  Jim  and  Kenneth, 
all  right,  as  they  were  puzzling  how  to  make  a 
big  splash  in  the  puddle  before  these  two  girls, 
and  yet  escape  bankruptcy. 

The  Bridal  Contest  was  a  strange  sight.  Any 
couple  who  wanted  to  marry  in  haste,  could  secure 
a  special  license  at  this  booth  and  be  married 
forthwith.  And  to  every  pair  so  married,  the 
managers  of  the  fair  presented  a  twenty-dollar 
gold  piece,  that  more  than  defrayed  the  costs  of 
the  ceremony.  To  say  the  Bridal  Booth  was  a 
failure,  would  be  rank  envy  and  jealousy  on  the 
part  of  any  single  cow-boy  or  woman  that  attended 
the  fair — and  failed  in  securing  a  mate. 

The  girls  watched  while  three  pairs  were  mar- 
ried, and  in  each  case,  the  bride  was  a  stranger 
in  Oak  Creek,  while  the  groom  was  a  newly- 
fledged  rancher  who  needed  a  housekeeper  worse 
than  he  needed  his  freedom. 


A  WILD-WEST  COUNTY  FAIR     205 

As  the  other  contests  were  scheduled  for  eleven, 
the  four  young  people,  following  after  their  Of- 
ficial Guide,  went  the  rounds.  Not  one  sight 
missed  them  that  day,  and  they  turned  weary 
bodies  towards  the  camp  that  night,  thinking  of 
but  one  thing — the  cot-beds  that  awaited  them. 

Wednesday  was  the  day  when  the  races  took 
place.  Not  only  the  broncho  busting,  but  horse- 
racing  and  other  events  of  the  kind.  A  novelty 
was  offered  this  year,  by  having  several  Nebraska 
cow-boys  race  on  steers.  The  people  for  twenty 
miles  around  Oak  Creek,  had  seen  bull  fights, 
wild  steer  breaking,  and  all  sorts  of  horse-racing, 
but  never  had  they  witnessed  a  steer  race. 

It  proved  very  exciting,  as  the  men  who  rode 
the  animals  were  gayly  trapped  out  and  made  a 
great  noise  when  the  race  started.  Their  shout- 
ing and  wildly  waving  hats,  added  no  little  to  the 
frenzy  of  the  steers.  One  animal  tripped  and 
threw  his  rider,  and  another  balked  outright  and 
began  to  stampede.  Finding  he  could  not  dis- 
lodge the  encumbrance  that  clung  to  his  back,  he 
suddenly  threw  himself  and  rolled. 

Every  one  screamed,  but  the  rider  was  alert  and 
the  moment  the  steer  touched  the  earth,  he  was 
up  on  his  feet,  bowing  and  smiling.  A  wild 
cheering  greeted  him,  but  he  had  no  claim  to  the 


206  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

prize,  as  that  went  to  the  rider  who  won  the  race. 

Polly  and  Eleanor  became  well-acquainted  with 
Jim  and  Kenneth  during  those  two  days  at  the 
fair,  and  when  it  was  time  to  say  good-by,  the 
boys  felt  as  if  they  were  losing  two  old  chums. 

"We  have  to  ride  across  the  desert  to-morrow, 
you  know,"  explained  Jim,  regretfully. 

"That's  so!  where  will  you  work  next?"  asked 
Tom. 

"From  Rabbitt's  Ear  Inn  to  the  Highway," 
said  Kenneth. 

"And  when  will  you  be  back  again?  When 
can  you  come  to  Pebbly  Pit  again  to  visit  us?" 
asked  Eleanor. 

"We  may  not  be  there  again  this  summer,  as 
our  work  now  leads  away  from  this  section.  In 
fact,  the  Boss  says,  if  the  cold  does  not  come  too 
early  to  interfere,  he  wants  to  finish  his  survey 
all  along  the  other  side  of  the  desert,  this  year," 
explained  Kenneth. 

"Oh  pshaw !  then  we  won't  have  any  more  good 
times,"  said  Eleanor,  poutingly. 

"But  we  will  when  we  all  meet  in  New  York," 
reminded  Jim. 

Tom  looked  from  one  to  the  other,  for  here 
was  news! 


A  WILD-WEST  COUNTY  FAIR    207 

"Never  mind  that,  Tom — it's  a  secret  with  usl" 
laughed  Eleanor. 

"I'm  sure  it  must  be,  for  John  never  said  a 
word  about  it  to  me.  And  if  you  girls  were  go- 
ing with  Anne  Stewart,  he  would  have  told  me," 
replied  Tom. 

"You  know  the  old  adage,  'Plans  of  mice  and 
men  go  astray,'  but  it  did  not  say  'Plans  of  girls 
and  mice.'  So  my  plan  will  come  out  fine,  you- 
all  wait  and  see !" 

"Yes,  I  reckon  we  will  waitl"  laughed  Polly, 
incredulously. 


CHAPTER  XII 

NOLLA'S  PLANS  DEVELOP 

THE  days  passed  joyously  at  Pebbly  Pit,  until 
John  and  Tom  declared  they  must  return  to  their 
work  beyond  Denver.  They  had  been  postpon- 
ing their  departure,  because  John  had  confided  to 
his  chum,  that  Anne  was  waiting  to  hear  definitely 
about  the  school  in  New  York  City,  and  upon  her 
going  there  depended  many  other  important 
things. 

Tom  smiled  knowingly  to  himself,  as  he  was 
sure  one  of  the  "many  things"  to  John  was  his 
proposal  to  Anne.  Every  one  felt  more  or  less  in- 
terested in  the  expectant  letter,  and  when  it  finally 
arrived,  Anne  had  a  circle  of  anxious  friends 
waiting  to  hear  the  verdict. 

"Well,  I've  been  accepted  and  I  am  to  report  at 
the  address  in  New  York  on  September  twenty- 
fifth,"  said  Anne,  hastily  scanning  the  short  note. 

"Hurrah!  That  means  we  go  with  you!" 
shouted  Eleanor,  catching  hold  of  Anne  and  danc- 
ing her  about. 

208 


NOLLA'S  PLANS  DEVELOP   209 

Polly  looked  very  glum.  "Anne,  how  does 
your  going  effect  my  school  plans?" 

"You  can  talk  about  school  some  other  time, 
Poll,  but  Tom  and  I  have  to  start  back  to  camp 
to-morrow,  and  /  want  to  know  from  Anne  just 
how  her  going  effects  me?"  demanded  John,  look- 
ing her  in  the  eyes. 

Anne  smiled  bravely  back  at  him  and  said: 
"Just  what  I  told  you.  I  must  help  Paul  complete 
his  college  course,  then  I  will  be  free  to  sign  other 
agreements." 

"Meanwhile,  I  am  to  go  on  plodding  through 
classes  and  camp  without  knowing  whether  or  not 
I  am  ever  going  to  be  rewarded !"  grumbled  John, 
so  discouraged  that  every  one  felt  sorry  for  him. 

"One  doesn't  plod  through  studies  or  work, 
for  mere  reward.  Polly  says  she  wants  to  study 
for  the  love  of  it,  and  Eleanor  wants  to  go  into 
business  for  the  love  of  that!  It  is  the  only  way 
one  can  succeed,"  ventured  Mrs.  Brewster,  more 
to  fill  up  an  embarrassing  gap  in  the  conversation 
than  for  anything  else. 

John  turned  sullenly  and  stamped  away.  He 
continued  down  the  trail  to  the  Cliffs  and  was 
soon  lost  to  sight.  The  girls  then  coaxed  Anne 
to  come  away  with  them  as  they  had  a  plan  to 
ask  her  about. 


2io  POLLY,  AND  ELEANOR 

Mrs.  Brewster  waited  until  every  one  was  gone 
his  or  her  way,  then  she  ran  after  her  son.  No 
one  knows  what  was  said  or  done,  then  or  during 
the  day  but  that  night,  as  they  all  sat  at  supper, 
John  stood  up  and  smiled. 

Jeb  was  just  passing  with  a  basket  of  newly  laid 
eggs,  and  Sary  was  leaning  over  Mr.  Brewster's 
back  with  a  deep  dish  of  milk-toast  that  she  ex- 
pected to  place  before  him.  John  coughed  sig- 
nificantly, and  Sary  stopped  to  listen. 

"I'm  going  to  announce  good  news  to  you-all, 
to-night.  I  finally  persuaded  Anne  to  promise  to 
be  my  wife,  someday.  So  she  goes  to  New  York 
City  as  my  fiancee,  and  I  will  study  hard  and  do 
everything  possible  to  be  worthy  of  her,  for  she 
is  a  brave  girl!" 

Sam  Brewster  half  arose  to  congratulate  the  two 
young  people,  but  Sary's  dish  was  in  the  way. 
He  bumped  his  head  and  the  dish  slid  from  her 
hands. 

Sary  threw  up  both  hands  in  dismay — there  was 
the  milk-toast  spattered  all  over  the  ground  I 
But  a  laugh  from  her  mistress  caused  her  to  look 
in  the  direction  the  family-group  were  gazing. 
She  saw  Jeb  standing  as  if  rooted  to  the  grass, 
his  lower  jaw  sagging  as  he  frowned  at  a  basket 
of  broken  eggs  upon  the  ground. 


NOLUA'S  PLANS  DEVELOP   211 

Sary  threw  her  inspiration  into  the  double 
breach  caused  by  maid  and  man.  "Thar  goes  th' 
supper  an'  them  eggs,  but  tush!  Trifles  don't 
count  none  when  a  man  hez  sech  fine  news  ez  John 
an'  Jeb  hes.  Come  right  over  here,  Jeb,  an' 
spring  yur  secret  now  that  John  hes  split  his'n  to 
the  fam'ly!" 

Jeb  scuffled  his  feet  and  sheepishly  hung  his 
head.  One  foot  unconsciously  stirred  the  yolks 
of  the  broken  eggs.  But  Sary  was  not  a  woman 
to  stand  for  such  shyness  when  it  cast  reflections 
on  her  ardent  manner  in  which  she  described  how 
Jeb  rose  to  the  bait  temptingly  hung  before  his 
yery  nose. 

She  forgot  milk-toast  and  all  else  in  this  final 
bout  with  her  unwilling  lover.  She  hurried  over 
and  nudged  him  sharply  in  the  ribs,  then  whispered 
in  a  stage  tone: 

"G'wan  now,  Jeb !  Spruce  up  an'  tell  'em  like- 
ez-how  this  air  goin'  to  be  a  double  trick!  John 
an'  Miss  Anne,  me  an'  you — seel" 

Polly  and  Eleanor  laughed  appreciatively,  and 
Mrs.  Brewster  smiled  for  she  had  had  suspicions. 
But  Sam  Brewster  was  so  amazed,  that  he  leaned 
back  in  his  chair  and  puffed  for  breath.  To  think 
that  Jeb  could  ever  have  summoned  enough  cour- 
age to  propose  to  a  woman — but  let  that  woman 


-12  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

be  an  Amazon  like  Sary,  was  past  his  comprehen- 
sion! 

H<.'  could  not  get  over  it,  and  later,  his  wife 
confided:  "I  actually  believe  that  Sary  made  this 
match  for  herself.  Jeb  could  never  have  stood 
the  strain  of  making  love,  had  not  Sary  met  him 
more  than  half-way." 

That  evening  when  John  and  Anne  were  talk- 
ing confidentially  about  the  future,  John  said: 
"Mother,  I  haven't  a  ring  for  Anne  and  I  want 
her  to  have  it  before  she  goes  to  New  York,  so 
I  propose  going  to  Denver  and  buy  it  for  her 
before  I  go  back  to  work." 

"And  I  thought,  Mrs.  Brewster,  that  it  would 
be  a  good  plan  to  see  an  agent  about  renting  our 
house  for  a  year  or  two.  If  mother  and  I  live 
in  New  York,  there  is  no  sense  in  closing  the  place 
when  we  can  rent  it  for  enough  to  pay  taxes  and 
upkeep." 

"I  think  you  are  perfectly  right  there,  Anne, 
and  the  sooner  you  place  it  in  good  hands,  the 
better.  When  did  you  think  of  running  up  to 
tow?"  said  Mrs.  Brewster. 

"Well,  you  see,  mother,  Tom  and  I  should  have 
joined  our  men  long  ago,  but  one  thing  or  another 
kept  us  on  here.  Now  that  all  is  settled  for  two 
years  at  least,  I  want  to  get  away  and  plunge 


NOLLA'S  PLANS  DEVELOP   213 

into  work  so  I  will  be  ready  for  Anne  when  she 
comes  back,"  said  John. 

Mrs,  Brewster  smiled.  "Will  you  go  to  Den- 
ver to-day?" 

"To-night !  Why,  it  is  eight  o'clock!  But  I 
could  take  the  noon  train  when  it  goes  back  from 
Oak  Creek,  and  Anne  might  go  with  me." 

"That's  what  I  thought  you  could  do,  but  your 
evident  impatience  made  me  wonder  if  you  had 
an  air-route  you  could  travel  by." 

John  laughed,  and  Anne  placed  her  arm  about 
her  future  mother-in-law.  Then  the  talk  veered 
to  Polly  and  her  future  education.  John  and 
his  fiancee  had  a  hard  task  in  convincing  Mrs. 
Brewster  that  it  was  best  for  Polly  to  accompany 
the  Stewarts  to  New  York,  to  school;  but  finally, 
when  all  three  returned  to  the  house,  a  resigned 
look  was  upon  Mrs.  Brewster's  face.  But  not 
a  word  was  said  at  that  time. 

The  next  morning,  every  member  of  the  family 
accompanied  John  and  Anne  to  Oak  Creek,  and 
gave  them  a  merry  send-off  to  Denver. 

"It's  only  for  a  few  days,  you  big  sillies!" 
laughed  Anne,  as  she  leaned  from  the  little  car- 
window  to  answer  many  questions  from  her  friends 
on  the  platform. 

"True,  but  think  of  all  that  can  happen  in  a 


2i4  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

few  days!  Jeb  may  jilt  Sary  and  elope  with 
Barbara — I've  seen  her  casting  jealous  eyes  at 
Sary,  lately!  Then  Tom  Latimer  may  suddenly 

find  he  is  in  love  with "  but  Barbara  choked 

further  words  from  Eleanor  at  this  point,  by  shak- 
ing her  viciously  from  the  rear. 

The  others  had  to  laugh  at  Eleanor's  teasing, 
but  her  sister  was  furious.  "I  simply  will  not 
stand  this  treatment,  so  now!  You  can  act  like 
fools  and  farmers,  but  I  am  a  lady!" 

So  saying,  Barbara  wheeled  and  marched  de- 
fiantly over  to  the  box-car  station.  She  entered 
and  remained  there  until  the  train  had  disappeared 
around  the  bend.  Then  she  came  forth  with  a 
victorious  look  upon  her  face.  No  one  asked 
her  what  caused  the  change  of  expression,  and 
soon  the  incident  was  forgotten  for  the  day. 

Tom  Latimer  was  unusually  quiet  on  the  home- 
ward drive,  and  when  he  had  assisted  Eleanor  to 
alight  from  the  great  wagon,  he  whispered  for 
her  ears  alone:  "Who  were  you  going  to  have 
me  propose  to,  Nolla?" 

She  sent  him  a  mischievous  look  and  whispered 
back  "Polly." 

He  laughed  softly  and  pinched  her  arm,  but 
she  noted  that  the  rich  red  color  flushed  his  face 
suddenly,  and  she  wondered,  precociously,  whether 


NOLLA'S  PLANS  DEVELOP   215 

she  had  accidently  touched  npon  a  secret  spot  hid- 
den in  his  heart?  The  very  fact  of  such  a  dis- 
covery made  her  defy,  silently,  the  possibility  of 
any  one  ever  daring  to  confess  love  to  her  Polly. 
"No  indeed!  Polly  and  she  were  cut  out  for 
business  only." 

But  the  disquieting  thought  that  a  fine  chap 
like  Tom  Latimer  might  be  in  love  with  simple 
wonderful  little  Polly,  made  Eleanor  zealous  in 
her  plans  for  carrying  her  friend  off  to  a  New 
York  school.  No  one  knew  that  she  had  already 
started  the  machinery  going  for  her  own  benefit, 
but  they  were  soon  to  find  out  that  this  fun-lov- 
ing girl  was  as  persistent  and  persevering  as  one 
could  find  anywhere,  when  she  had  a  pet  problem 
to  work  out. 

The  evening  after  John  and  Anne  had  gone 
to  Mrs.  Stewarts,  in  Denver,  Barbara  asked  a 
favor  of  her  host.  The  very  manner  in  which 
she  asked  it,  surprised  every  one  at  table.  "Mr. 
Brewster,  I  have  an  important  errand  to  do  at 
Oak  Creek,  to-morrow,  and  I  want  you  to  allow 
Jeb  to  drive  me  in." 

"To-morrow!  Why,  we  just  got  back  from 
there." 

"Yes,  I  know,  but  it  could  not  have  been  done 
to-day,  so  I  have  to  go  in  to-morrow.H 


216  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

"Jeb  has  to  superintend  the  mowing  of  our  first 
crops  to-morrow,  if  it  is  clear.  Maybe  Tom 
will  drive  you  in  if  it  is  so  urgertf." 

Barbara  turned  imploring  eyes  on  Tom  Lati- 
mer.  Then  Eleanor  spoke  up:  "I,  too,  must  go 
in  as  I  expect  a  telegram  from  Chicago." 

Her  sister  scowled  at  her,  but  she  seemed  sur- 
prised as  well.  She  stammered:  "What  have  you 
to  wire  for?" 

"Ah!  Is  that  what  you  did?  Let's  see — you 
managed  it  this  noon,  while  we  were  watching 
the  train  depart,  didn't  you?  You  were  in  that 
station  just  long  enough  I"  exulted  Eleanor,  grin- 
ning at  Barbara  daringly. 

But  her  sister  would  not  be  drawn  into  an  argu- 
ment this  time,  and  Eleanor  decided  that  it  must 
be  something  important,  indeed,  when  Bob  would 
not  snap  back  at  her.  There  had  been  times  at 
home  when  Barbara  had  secrets  that  she  feared 
others  to  share,  then  she  would  keep  her  peace 
with  Eleanor. 

"Unless  it  is  a  personal  matter  that  needs  your 
presence  in  Oak  Creek,  Alec  Hewitt  will  look 
after  it.  He  goes  to  and  from  the  post  office 
every  day,  and  often  brings  our  mail  or  messages 
for  us,"  said  Mrs.  Brewster,  hoping  to  spare  the 
horses  another  hard  day's  work. 


NOLLA'S  PLANS  DEVELOP   217 

"I  have  to  be  there  myself,  as  I  may  have  to 
decide  on  a  very  important  personal  matter,"  re- 
turned Barbara,  slightly  embarrassed. 

So  it  was  settled  that  Tom  Latimer  would  ride 
with  the  three  girls  to  Oak  Creek  on  the  follow- 
ing morning.  This  would  spare  the  wagon  team 
the  trip  and  at  the  same  time  take  the  place  of 
any  other  pleasure  ride  that  might  have  been 
planned. 

Polly  was  at  a  loss  to  understand  why  such 
secrecy  should  exist  between  these  two  sisters — 
Bob  refusing  to  confide  in  Eleanor,  and  Nolla 
smilingly  keeping  her  own  counsel,  about  the  im- 
portant errands. 

As  Eleanor  had  suspected,  Barbara  went  di- 
rectly to  the  box-car  where  the  telegrams  were 
received.  But  to  the  latter's  disappointment, 
there  was  one  only — and  that  one  was  for  Eleanor 
Maynard ! 

"Are  you  sure  you  did  not  get  the  name  wrong 
— I  am  to  hear  surely,  to-day,  about  something 
very  urgent !"  complained  Barbara. 

"This  is  mine,  all  right,  Bob,  for  I  expected 
it.  If  you  like,  you  can  read  it  now  that  I  know 
what  it  says,"  and  Eleanor  tendered  the  yellow 
sheet  to  her  sister. 

Barbara,  snatched  it  and  read  in  angry  surprise : 


2i 8  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

"Your  wire  received.     Expect  me  Sat- 
urday.    Will  visit  there  for  a  week. 
Love  to  you  both, 

FATHER" 

"How  dare  you  ask  father  to  come  here? 
How  do  you  know  the  Brewsters  want  him? 
And  besides,  there  is  no  place  for  him  to  use  as 
a  sleeping-room!"  she  managed  to  say  in  her  fury. 

Polly  and  Tom  had  been  sitting  outside  on  a 
truck  but  they  could  not  help  hearing  Barbara's 
words.  Polly  smiled  up  at  her  companion. 
Then  Eleanor  was  heard  saying: 

"No  need  to  rear  up  like  a  mad  rattler,  Bob. 
I  have  a  nice  little  plan  under  way,  but  it  now 
needs  Daddy's  persuasive  powers  to  perfect  it.  I 
wired  him  twice  this  past  week,  but  no  one  knew 
of  it.  If  you  wired  for  money  or  something 
else,  he  likely  will  bring  it  with  him  on  Satur- 
day." 

The  very  coolness  of  Eleanor's  reply  caused 
Barbara  to  lose  her  self-control  and  she  retorted : 
"Pooh!  I  wouldn't  think  of  asking  father  for 
anything.  You  can't  patronize  me  this  time, 
Eleanor  Maynard.  /  am  waiting  for  word  fromf 
mother!  There!" 


NOLLA'S  PLANS  DEVELOP   219 

"From  mother!  why  she  is  in  Newport  for  the 
Season." 

"You  mean  she  was  there.  Now  she  is  one  of 
a  very  select  party  of  the  best  New  York  society 
that  is  camping  at  Mrs.  Van  Alstynes'  wonderful 
bungalow  in  the  Muskoka  Woods.  And  I  trust 
/,  too,  will  soon  be  a  member  of  that  circle  I" 

"Oh,  ho!  So  that  is  your  little  game,  eh! 
Well,  Bob,  I  heartily  wish  you  luck.  You  haven't 
any  idea  how  quiet  and  enjoyable  Pebbly  Pit 
will  be  with  you  away  from  it!"  retorted  Elea- 
nor. 

With  this  parting  shaft,  the  younger  sister 
walked  out,  and  found  Tom  with  Polly  over  by 
the  watering  trough  where  the  seven  wardrobe 
trunks  had  offered  such  a  fine  table  surface  for  the 
gamblers  on  the  day  the  Chicago  girls  came  to 
Oak  Creek.  As  she  felt  sure  these  two  friends 
had  not  over-heard  the  conversation  between  Bar- 
bara and  herself,  there  was  no  need  in  explaining, 
as  yet. 

Barbara  failed  to  appear,  however,  and  finally 
Eleanor  went  to  the  door  to  call  her.  Her  im- 
patient words  were  arrested  by  hearing  the  opera- 
tor at  the  telegraph  instrument,  read  a  message 
aloud. 


220  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

"Wire  with  news  received.  Have  ar- 
ranged for  you.  Plenty  of  marriageable 
men  in  party.  Do  not  oppose  anything 
father  wants.  Win  his  consent  and  money 
for  visit.  Nolla  will  be  all  right  there 
with  Anne.  Father  now  back  at  bank. 
Write  him  immediately.  Do  not  waive 
your  rights  on  mine.  We  will  fight  if  nec- 
essary. It  means  a  fortune  for  you. 
Wire  me  minute  you  have  news.  Big  af- 
fair on  next  week.  MOTHER." 

Eleanor  managed  to  slip  away  without  Bar- 
bara's seeing  her.  And  so  elated  was  the  elder 
sister  over  her  mother's  message,  that  she  failed  to 
find  any  omission  in  the  telegram.  But  Eleanor 
realized  that  her  mother  did  not  mention  her  love 
for  her  daughter — it  was  all  about  society,  money, 
and  graft! 

But  her  mother's  message  could  not  throw  cold 
water  over  Eleanor;  because  of  the  fact  that  her 
father  would  be  with  her  the  end  of  that  very 
week !  This  was  good  news  enough  for  any  one, 
so  she  ran  over  to  Polly,  waving  her  message. 

"Just  thinkt  Daddy  is  coming  to  visit  us  at 
Pebbly  Pit.  Won't  it  be  fun  for  him  to  sleep  in 
the  barn  with  John  and  Tom?" 


NOLLA'S  PLANS  DEVELOP   221 

"Oh,  he  never  could,  Nolla  I"  gasped  Polly. 

"Why  not?  He  is  no  better  than  the  boys, 
here!" 

"But — well,  I'm  sure  father  won't  like  him  to. 
We  must  plan  somewhere  else  for  him,"  replied 
Polly. 

"I'll  tell  you-all  a  secret,  if  you  won't  tell  any 
one.  I  got  Daddy  to  hurry  here  on  purpose  to 
meet  John  and  Tom.  I  believe  he  will  do  some- 
thing about  the  mine  and  the  Cliffs  if  he  hears 
the  plans  from  the  boys.  You  know,  his  bank 
makes  big  investments  at  times.  But  don't  let 
Bob  know  this,  for  anything  in  the  world!" 

Tom  looked  pleasantly  surprised  at  the  sug- 
gestion. He  had  forgotten  all  about  Mr.  May- 
nard's  connection  with  a  flourishing  bank. 

"Won't  it  be  nice  to  have  your  father  meet 
my  father,"  remarked  Polly,  thinking  not  so  much 
of  finances  as  of  hospitality. 

"Yes,  and  I  hope  he  won't  interfere  with  Bob's 
plans  to  join  mother  in  the  North  Woods.  If 
only  we  could  get  rid  of  her  right  off,  what  a  fine 
time  we  could  have  with  Dad  here!"  Eleanor 
sighed. 

Polly  never  could  understand  the  lack  of  love 
and  family  pride  between  these  two  sisters,  but 
then  she  had  never  seen  how  many  families  there 


222  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

are,  where  husband  and  wife  have  opposite  ten- 
dencies and  ideals;  it  inevitably  followed  that  the 
children  showed  these  antagonistic  qualities  in  their 
behavior  to  each  other. 

Having  replied  to  their  telegrams,  both  sisters 
were  ready  to  ride  back  to  the  ranch.  But  Tom 
suggested  that  they  visit  the  Movies  where  a  great 
society  drama  was  being  shown.  This  pleased 
the  girls,  and  soon  they  were  following  the  hair- 
breadth escapes  of  an  unscrupulous  society  im- 
postor, and  the  wreck  he  had  made  of  a  young 
damsel's  faith. 

As  they  filed  from  the  low-ceiled,  ill-smelling 
theater,  Eleanor  laughed  and  said:  "That's  the 
kind  of  life  Bob  wants !  If  she  ever  had  a  fortune 
of  her  own,  she  would  have  to  fend  off  just  such 
rascals.  Watch  me  wasting  my  life  trying  to 
catch  a  husband — Pouf!" 

Tom  laughed  merrily  for  he  liked  the  bluntness 
of  this  girl,  but  he  was  surprised  at  the  flush  Bar- 
bara manifested  as  she  wondered  if  this  astute 
sister  of  hers  could  have  heard  that  message 
f  read:  "Mother  mentioned  'a  fortune'  and  'mar- 

j 

riageable  men.1 '  But  Eleanor's  expression  was 
as  innocent  as  a  babe's  just  then. 

That  evening  after  supper,  Eleanor  drew  Polly 


NOLLA'S  PLANS  DEVELOP        223 

out  to  the  terrace,  which  was  isolated  at  that  time, 
and  shared  her  plans  with  her. 

"I  was  afraid  to  let  you,  or  any  one,  know 
what  I  was  doing,  so  I  just  went  ahead  and  did 
it!" 

Polly  manifested  no  surprise  at  these  words, 
as  she  expected  to  hear  much  more,  so  she  pa- 
tiently waited.  Eleanor  seemed  at  a  loss,  for 
once  in  her  lifetime,  to  know  how  to  tell  her  story 
without  having  it  condemned  by  this  upright  con- 
scientious friend. 

"I  wrote  mother  just  after  we  discovered  the 
mine,  and  told  her  how  unhappy  Barbara  was  in 
this  forgotten  corner  of  the  earth.  You  see,  I 
wanted  mother  to  send  for  her  at  once,  and  I 
was  anxious  to  help  Bob  relieve  us  of  her  company, 
But  I  never  dreamed  that  Bob  was  as  anxious  to 
get  away,  as  we  were  to  have  her  go !" 

"Oh,  Nolla !  we  are  not  anxious  to  have  her 
go — don't  say  that!"  remonstrated  Polly. 

"Well,  you  know  what  I  mean — everything  will 
be  so  nice  with  no  one  to  be  forever  finding  fault 
and  nagging  at  one !" 

"Maybe  she  wouldn't  nag  so  much  if  you  did 
not  tease  her  so!  Nolla,  you  know  you  are  so 
clever  that  you  have  no  patience  with  Bob's  slow- 


224  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

ness  in  getting  things,"  replied  Polly,  unconscious 
of  the  fact  that  she  had  found  the  very  root  of 
the  trouble  between  the  sisters. 

"Anyway,  Bob  is  on  the  high  road  to  a  society 
camp  in  the  East,  and  we  will  be  able  to  go  our 
own  sweet  way  without  her.  But  I  brought  you 
out  here  to  confess  what  I  did!  I  wired  father 
all  about  the  mine,  and  the  Cliffs,  and  the  Latimers 
and  all — and  also  told  him  that  the  doctor  thinks 
a  winter  in  New  York  will  harden  me  splendidly. 
I  wired  the  doctor  to  tell  him  that  this  was  true, 
and  he  must  tell  father  so. 

"Well,  I  heard  from  Daddy;  he  balked  at  first 
— said  it  was  rank  foolishness  for  any  doctor  to 
recommend  the  beastly  climate  of  New  York  City 
in  preference  to  the  West  with  its  dryness.  I 
had  to  calm  him  on  that  point,  and  then  I  told  him 
that  Anne  and  her  mother  were  going  to  New 
York  and  I  wanted  to  go  with  them.  He  knows 
how  I  hate  the  teas,  and  bridge,  and  parties  mother 
is  always  giving  Bob,  so  I  told  him  how  wretched 
I  always  was  in  winter,  without  friends  or  any 
one  to  talk  to — as  mother  and  Bob  were  always 
too  busy  with  social  duties. 

"Father  hates  these  duties  as  much  as  I  do, 
and  he  says  mother  has  no  right  to  give  all  her 
time  to  Bob  and  never  see  me  from  one  week's 


NOLLA'S  PLANS  DEVELOP   225 

end  to  another.  So  he  was  vulnerable  in  that 
spot.  When  I  told  him  how  he  could  visit  me 
in  New  York  once  a  month,  and  spend  several 
days  going  around  with  me,  he  just  caved  in. 
And,  Polly,  I  am  sure  he  will  agree  to  my  going 
with  Anne. 

"To-day,  after  I  got  his  wire,  I  waited  till  Bob 
was  out  of  the  way,  then  I  sent  a  message  to 
Anne,  to  tell  her  to  be  on  the  lookout  for  Dad 
who  was  coming  here  on  Saturday.  I  said  it 
would  be  so  nice  for  him  to  ride  down  from  Den- 
ver with  John  and  her.  And  maybe  John  could 
explain  the  financing  of  the  two  companies  to  him. 

"I  sent  the  second  wire  to  Dad  telling  him  to 
be  sure  and  meet  Anne  at  the  Denver  Terminal 
at  noon,  on  Saturday,  as  she  would  be  expecting 
him.  So  now  I  have  all  my  irons  in  the  fire  and 
they're  getting  red-hot,  too!" 

As  Eleanor  concluded,  Polly  laughed  at  her 
funny  expression  but  remarked,  "It  would  be  ter- 
rible if  your  irons  got  so  hot  that  they  melted  be- 
fore you  could  use  any  one  of  them,  wouldn't  it?" 


RIGGLEY  &  RATZGER  OF  NEW  YORK 

EVERY  day  that  week  was  crowded  with  events 
for  the  people  at  Pebbly  Pit,  and  never  had  so 
many  telegrams  passed  through  the  hands  of  the 
amazed  agent  at  Oak  Creek.  First  there  were 
those  sent  by  Barbara  and  Eleanor,  and  the  re- 
plies to  them.  Next  day  the  two  girls  telegraphed 
anew  from  Oak  Creek,  and  these  had  replies  which 
were  forwarded  by  Alec  Hewitt  who  passed  Brew- 
ster's  ranch.  Following  these,  came  a  telegram 
from  Anne,  saying  she  had  heard  from  Mr.  May- 
iiard  and  would  meet  him  as  planned.  Then  there 
came  one  from  Mr.  Latimer's  office  in  New  York 
to  Tom,  saying  that  Dr.  Evans  and  Mr.  Latimer 
had  started  for  the  West  on  Thursday,  on  the 
Limited.  Probably  they  would  reach  Pebbly  Pit 
on  Sunday  or  Monday.  Closely  following  that 
message,  came  one  to  Mr.  Brewster  from  New 
York,  signed  Riggley  &  Ratzger,  Lawyers,  to  the 
effect  that  "they  had  been  appointed  the  repre- 

226 


RIGGLEY  &  RATZGER  OF  N.  Y.     227 

sentatives  for  the  company  that  was  formed  to 
make  jewels  from  lava-stone,  and  they  would  take 
great  pleasure  in  visiting  Pebbly  Pit  on  Saturday 
or  Sunday,  in  order  to  inspect  the  Rainbow  Cliffs. 
They  might  be  induced  to  make  an  offer  for  the 
ranch." 

The  latter  suggestion  caused  Sam  Brewster  to 
laugh  as  he  had  not  done  since  he  heard  his  Polly 
was  determined  to  go  to  school.  "What  do  you 
think  of  such  sublime  fools,  Maw?"  chuckled  he, 
handing  the  telegram  across  the  table  as  they  sat 
on  the  porch. 

"Why,  I  don't  understand.  If  Evans  and  Lati- 
mer  are  on  their  way  here,  why  do  they  need 
representatives  ?  Isn't  Tom's  father  a  real  good 
lawyer  in  New  York?"  said  she. 

"Sure,  but  the  names  alone  give  me  an  idea  that 
they  are  crooks — listen:  Riggley  and  Ratzger. 
Doesn't  it  make  you  think  of  all  queer  kinds  of  fish 
that  one  finds  in  big  cities?"  laughed  her  husband. 

Tom  came  from  the  barns  about  this  time,  and 
Mrs.  Brewster  turned  to  tell  him  the  latest  news 
about  the  seekers  of  lava-stones.  In  corrobora- 
tion  of  his  wife's  words,  Sam  Brewster  held  out 
the  telegram. 

Tom  took  it  in  trembling  hands,  for  he  had 
heard  of  the  men  whose  names  were  signed  to 


228  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

the  message.  Then  he  glanced  at  the  signatures 
and  that  broke  his  amazed  spell  of  silence. 

"Why!  Mr.  Brewster,  how  dare  they  plan  to 
visit  here  ?"  he  shouted,  his  face  as  red  as  a  poppy. 

"Oh,  do  you  know  them?"  wondered  Mr.  Brew- 
ster. 

"Know  them?  Why,  man  alive,  they  are  the 
same  two  rascals  who  served  the  injunction  on 
father  and  Dr.  Evans,  and  then  they  tried  to  steal 
the  patent.  They  fought  in  Court,  but  lost  their 
case.  When  they  appealed,  the  Court  sustained 
the  first  verdict,  so  they  had  no  choice  but  to  give 
up.  I  wonder  what  game  they  are  coming  here 
for?" 

Mr.  Brewster  considered.  "Tom,  I  wouldn't 
be  surprised  if  they  came  here,  not  knowing  your 
folks  are,  also,  coming.  Maybe  they  hope  to 
get  first  shot  at  this  proposition  of  Rainbow 
Cliffs  and  in  this  way,  make  your  father  pay  a 
fabulous  price  for  the  stone." 

"Some  crooked  deal  like  that,  you  may  be  as- 
sured. But  I  can't  understand  how  they  ever 
heard  of  Rainbow  Cliffs  and  this  ranch?  There 
has  been  a  leak,  somewhere,  in  Dad's  organiza- 
tion," said  Tom,  emphatically. 

"Well,  let's  decide  now,  before  they  come,  what 
is  best  for  us  to  do.  If  they  get  here  before  your 


RIGGLEY  &  RATZGER  OF  N.  Y.     229 

father  and  Evans,  we  must  not  give  them  any  idea 
that  we  expect  other  guests,  nor  must  we  say  that 
we  suspect  them  of  foul  play.  We  must  give 
them  rope  enough  with  which  to  hang  them- 
selves." 

Here  Mrs.  Brewster  interpolated:  "We  may 
serve  all  of  our  friends  a  good  turn  by  receiving 
these  strangers  with  the  same  western  welcome 
that  we  extend  to  every  one.  But  let  us  not  give 
any  one  else  here  a  hint  of  what  we  now  know." 

Tom  agreed  that  this  was  a  wise  plan,  so  no 
one  suspected  there  was  an  under-current  of  ex- 
citement running  in  the  elder  Brewsters'  and  Tom's 
thoughts,  during  the  time  that  must  elapse  be- 
fore the  New  York  "representatives"  could  arrive 
at  Pebbly  Pit. 

Meanwhile,  Mr.  Maynard  met  Anne  and  John 
in  Denver,  and  the  three  took  the  noon  local  for 
Oak  Creek.  Polly  and  Eleanor  were  busy  help- 
ing Barbara  pack  her  five  trunks  to  have  them 
ready  for  the  ranch-wagon  to  take  to  the  station 
on  Saturday,  when  Tom  offered  to  drive  in  and 
meet  the  train  from  Denver.  This  done,  and 
Tom  on  his  way,  the  two  girls  wondered  what 
next  they  could  do  until  the  return  of  the  party 
from  Oak  Creek. 

"I  say!     Let's  run  to  the  Cliffs  and  watch  for 


230  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

the  first  glimpse  of  Daddy,"  suggested  Eleanor. 

"And  I'll  take  some  doughnuts  to  eat  in  case 
we  get  hungry,"  added  Polly. 

Fortified  with  a  bag  of  these  delectable  balls, 
the  two  girls  hastened  away.  Barbara  was  all 
sweetness  and  generosity,  now  that  she  was  sure 
of  going  to  join  her  mother  in  a  fashionable  camp. 
And  many  fine  bits  of  underwear,  or  dresses  fell 
Sary's  way,  when  Barbara  went  through  her  ward- 
robe, and  discarded  the  things  she  felt  would  be 
too  ordinary-looking  in  such  an  exclusive  "set"  as 
she  was  about  to  join. 

Sary  refused  nothing,  carrying  everything 
thrown  to  her,  in  her  arms  as  carefully  as  if  she 
were  holding  a  new-born  babe.  On  the  first  trip 
she  made  through  the  kitchen  in  order  to  reach  her 
private  domain,  she  stopped  before  Mrs.  Brewster 
and  held  out  the  lace-trimmed  underwear. 

"Mis  Brewster,  Ah  never  did  think  Ah  would 
have  sech  fine  troosos  fer  my  marritch.  When 
Ah  married  Bill  Ah  diden  have  nawthin'  but  a 
new  cambric  dress  and  a  sun-bunnet.  But  this 
marritch  will  be  the  reel  thing,  what  with  all  the 
stuff  I'm  k'lectin,  already." 

"You  are  fortunate,  Sary,  to  be  on  hand  just 
as  Miss  Bob's  trunks  are  cleared  out,"  remarked 
her  mistress. 


RIGGLEY  &  RATZGER  OF  N.  Y.     231 

"Yeh,  and  d'ye  know  what?"  Sary  leaned  over 
to  whisper  confidentially.  "Yeh  see  Ah'm  not 
lettin'  anythin'  she  gives  me  lay  around  one 
minute,  'cause  she  may  change  her  mind.  And 
ef  she  once  saw  what  a  heap  she  is  throwin'  away, 
she  might  think  Ah  was  gettin'  too  much!" 

Mrs.  Brewster  laughed  at  Sary's  wily  ways, 
and  replied:  "Well,  I'll  spare  you  from  all  the 
work  as  long  as  you  are  gathering  plums  from 
Bob's  orchard.  I  hope  you  can  fill  a  whole  trunk, 
Sary." 

But  an  unforeseen  outgrowth  of  all  these  dona- 
tions was  sure  to  happen.  Once  Sary  had  watched 
the  trunks  hoisted  up  in  the  ranch  wagon,  and 
realized  that  there  would  be  no  more  "pickin's" 
for  her,  she  ran  to  her  room  and  began  sorting 
and  gloating  over  the  mass  of  cast-off  clothing. 
And  so  mesmerized  was  she  with  pictures  of  her- 
self adorned  in  the  dresses  that  were  made  for  the 
form  half  her  girth  that  Mrs.  Brewster  found  it 
impossible  to  coax  her  back  to  the  kitchen. 

Having  the  Saturday's  baking  to  do,  as  well 
as  to  prepare  the  dinner  for  extra  ones  that  night, 
she  went  to  the  door  to  ask  Polly  and  Eleanor  to 
come  in  and  help  her.  But  the  two  girls  were  not 
in  sight. 

There  was  but  one  hope  left !     She  must  do  as 


232  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

clever  generals  did  in  battle,  when  the  fight  seems 
to  go  against  them — strategy. 

She  hurried  to  Sary's  door  which  was  closed 
and  locked. 

"Oh  Sary!  I  remembered  something  that  I 
wished  to  ask  you  about  several  times  this  past 
week.  Did  Jeb  give  you  the  engagement  ring 
yet?" 

Not  a  sound  came  from  within  for  a  few- 
moments,  then  the  key  turned  and  Sary's  amazed 
face  appeared  in  the  doorway.  The  floor  and  bed 
were  covered  with  finery,  each  piece  spread  out 
full  length. 

"Ah  clean  fergot  all  about  it.  Is  Miss  Anne 
got  her'n?" 

"Oh,  yes!  John  went  to  Denver  with  her  to 
choose  the  stone." 

"Kin  Jeb  git  a  ring  in  Oak  Crick,  d'ye  s'pose?" 

"Mercy  no!  Oak  Creek  hasn't  any  jewelry 
shop,  you  know." 

Sary  was  lost  in  thought  for  a  time,  and  this 
•was  Mrs.  Brewster's  opportunity.  "I've  been, 
wondering  how  it  would  do  to  hint  to  Jeb  that  it 
would  make  a  lovely  trip  if  he  were  to  accompany 
you  to  Denver  for  a  day,  and  let  you  select  your 
own  ring." 

"Oh!" 


RIGGLEY  &  RATZGER  OF  N.  Y.     233 

The  one  word  breathed  in  a  scarcely  audible 
sound  plainly  expressed  Sary's  ecstasy.  Her  great 
hands  were  loosely  clasped  before  her  as  her  eyes 
turned  ceiling-ward. 

"Of  course  with  the  house  full  of  company  for  a 
few  days  it  will  be  impossible  to  think  of  such  a 
thing,  but  Bob  is  going  away  the  first  of  the  week, 
and  then  John  and  Tom  leave;  next  Miss  Anne 
goes  back  to  Denver  to  see  about  sending  her  stuff 
to  New  York,  or  selling  what  she  really  won't 
need,  and  then  you  will  have  time  to  take  such 
a  trip.  I  will  see  that  Jeb  realizes  that  it  is  his 
privilege  to  do  this  for  you." 

"Oh,  Mis  Brewster,  what  kin  Ah  ever  do  fer 
you?" 

"Well,  you  can  begin  to  repay  me  for  my  kind- 
ness by  coming  out  to  help  me  with  Saturday's 
work.  And  while  we  are  doing  that  I  will  plan 
with  you  what  had  best  be  said  and  done." 

Sary  felt  that  there  was  a  cunning  here  that  she 
was  not  able  to  cope  with,  but  she  could  not  resist 
the  temptation  to  talk  and  plan  about  an  engage- 
ment ring  for  herself,  so  she  bravely  turned  her 
back  on  the  array  of  finery,  and  stoically  followed 
her  mistress. 

Meantime  Polly  and  Eleanor  climbed  the  cliffs 
and  sat  where  they  could  see  the  Bear  Fork's  trail 


234  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

in  the  distance.  Polly  was  sure  they  would  see  the 
great  ranch-wagon  the  moment  it  came  around  the 
bend. 

They  had  not  been  seated  there  more  than 
twenty  minutes  before  Eleanor  craned  her  neck 
and  gazed  earnestly  at  two  dots  that  seemed  to 
be  crawling  along  the  trail.  Polly  turned  and 
gazed  also. 

"Why,  it's  two  horsemen!  I  wonder  if  Jim 
and  Ken  can  be  thinking  of  visiting  us  over  Sun- 
day,— because  Mr.  Latimer  is  coming,  you  know," 
exclaimed  Eleanor,  joyfully  surprised. 

"They  wouldn't  be  arriving  Saturday  afternoon, 
as  they  wouldn't  be  able  to  leave  camp  until  Sun- 
day," added  Polly. 

Both  girls  shaded  their  eyes  with  their  hands 
but  neither  could  make  out  the  forms  of  the  riders. 
They  were  mere  specks  on  the  white  trail.  But 
the  girls  held  their  breath  when  the  horsemen 
turned  from  Bear  Forks  trail  and  rode  in  under 
the  precipice  that  overhung  the  entrance  to  Pebbly 
Pit. 

"Whoever  it  is,  they  are  coming  here,"  said 
Polly. 

"I  wonder  if  it  could  be  Mr.  Latimer  and  Dr. 
Evans — they  may  have  arrived  in  Oak  Creek 
sooner  than  they  expected,"  ventured  Eleanor. 


RIGGLEY  &  RATZGER  OF  N.  Y.     235 

"We  can  watch  better  from  this  point  than 
anywhere  else,  and  when  they  pass  the  Rainbow 
Cliffs,  we  can  see  who  they  are,"  now  said  Polly. 

So  they  watched  impatiently  until  the  riders 
came  from  under  the  hanging  walls  of  rock,  and 
rode  again  along  the  top  of  the  shale  that  covered 
a  wide  area  between  the  ravines  and  the  Cliffs. 

This  great  stretch  of  shale  was  very  treacherous 
going,  as  on  the  both  sides  were  deep  gulches,  or 
erosions,  made  by  floods  from  thaws  and  storms. 
An  abandoned  trail  ran  quite  close  to  one  of  these 
ravines  but  the  land-slides  of  shale  had  compelled 
the  people  at  Pebbly  Pit  to  break  out  a  new  and 
safer  trail  through  the  middle  of  the  field.  To 
strange  eyes,  the  old  trail  on  the  edge  of  the 
gulch,  was  the  harder  and  easier  going,  but  every 
one  coming  to  the  ranch  knew  the  center-trail  to 
be  the  one  always  used.  Strangers  seldom  visited 
Pebbly  Pit,  and  never  without  a  member  of  the 
ranch  family,  or  a  neighbor  to  escort  them. 

When  the  two  horsemen  reached  the  branch- 
ing of  the  trails,  they  halted,  and  the  girls  saw 
them  ponder.  One  man  motioned  with  a  hand  at 
the  rough  trail  running  over  the  top  of  the  shale 
in  the  middle  of  the  area,  but  the  other  seemed 
to  argue  that  the  edge-trail  was  the  best  one  to 
take. 


23  6  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

"Oh  dear!  I  hope  they  won't  take  that  slip- 
pery one!"  cried  Polly,  in  tense  nervousness. 

"I  wish  we  could  yell  and  warn  them!"  ex- 
claimed Eleanor,  half-rising  from  her  seat. 

"They'll  never  hear  us  at  this  distance,  but  we 
might  run  along  the  top-trail  and  beckon  them  to 
climb  up  there." 

"But,  Polly,  by  the  time  we  reach  the  shale  they 
will  be  almost  at  the  Rainbow  Cliffs,"  objected 
Eleanor. 

"Yes,  I  know,  but  it  seems  awful  to  sit  here  and 
watch  them  ride  over  that  dangerous  road." 

"To  relieve  our  minds,  we  can  go  down  as  far 
as  possible  and  meet  them  when  they  ride  out  at 
Rainbow  Cliffs,"  suggested  Eleanor. 

So  the  two  girls  scrambled  down  from  their 
high  point  of  observation,  and  started  along  the 
rock-ribbed  road  that  led  past  the  Cliffs.  They 
had  not  gone  far  along  this  trail,  however,  be- 
fore Polly  saw  Jeb  riding  down  from  the  cor- 
rals. 

"If  I  could  only  get  Jeb's  attention,  he  could  ride 
fast  and  warn  those  men  of  their  danger,"  Polly 
said,  thinking  aloud. 

"Let's  both  scream  at  the  top  of  our  lungs  and 
see  if  he  can  hear  us." 


RIGGLEY  &  RATZGER  OF  N.  Y.     237 

So  the  two  girls  stood  out  on  the  edge  of  a  huge 
bowlder  and,  making  megaphones  of  thetr  hands, 
shouted  again  and  again.  The  depression  made 
by  the  crater  that  lay  between  the  Cliffs  and  the 
corral,  acted  as  a  hollow  tube,  so  Jeb  finally  wheel- 
ed around  and  tried  to  locate  the  call.  When  he 
saw  the  girls,  he  immediately  started  to  meet  them 
as  no  one  on  the  ranch  would  shout  that  way  for 
fun. 

It  took  ten  minutes  for  Jeb  to  cover  the  circui- 
tous path  and  join  the  girls,  and  when  they  had 
hastily  explained  the  cause  of  their  concern,  he  re- 
plied: "Gosh !  Ah  was  told  to  hang  a  sign  on  that 
flat  cliff  to  warn  folks  offen  the  bad  trail!" 

"Well,  you  didn't,  so  now  race  down  the  good 
trail  and  try  to  make  the  men  hear  you,"  demanded 
Polly. 

Jeb  spurred  his  horse  at  that,  and  was  soon  out 
of  sight,  but  Polly  and  Eleanor  continued  in  the 
same  direction,  to  see  if  all  turned  out  well  for 
the  riders. 

Having  reached  and  passed  the  last  spur  of  the 
Rainbow  Cliffs,  and  then  climbing  the  steep  ascent 
to  the  top-trail,  they  finally  came  to  a  rise  whence 
the  whole  shale-field  could  be  seen.  But  not  a 
sign  of  horsemen  could  be  seen.  Jeb,  riding  like 


238  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

mad,  right  across  the  loose  shale  in  reckless  risk 
of  breaking  his  broncho's  legs,  was  the  only  man 
visible. 

Eleanor  turned  and  looked  in  wonderment  at 
Polly,  but  when  she  saw  the  look  of  horror  on  her 
friend's  face,  she  caught  at  her  arm. 

"Polly!     What  do  you  think  has  happened?" 

"Oh,  Nolla!  I  fear  they  are  down  in  that 
gulch !  Most  likely  the  shale  started  sliding  under 
their  horses'  hoofs,  and  before  they  realized  their 
danger,  they  were  swept  along  over  the  top !" 

"Oh,  mercy!  Polly — never  that!  Why  they 
will  be  killed!" 

Polly  never  said  a  word  but  watched  Jeb  as  he 
reined  in  his  horse.  Jumping  from  the  saddle  and 
hobbling  the  animal,  he  very  carefully  crawled  over 
the  apparently  safe  surface  between  himself  and 
the  ravine. 

"Now  I'm  sure  that's  what  happened,  Nolla, 
or  Jeb  wouldn't  try  to  get  over  there.  He's  going 
to  see  just  how  bad  things  are." 

"Poll,  we'd  better  run  as  fast  as  we  can,  and  get 
things  ready  at  the  ranch.  Your  father  ought  to 
know  this,  so  he  can  hitch  a  cart  to  two  strong 
horses  and  drive  there  to  help  carry  the  men  to  the 
house." 

"Nolla,  I  fear  there  will  be  nothing  left  to  carry 


RIGGLEY  &  RATZGER  OF  N.  Y.     239 

away.  Once  the  shale  starts  to  slide  down  that 
gulch,  it  goes  like  the  wind  and  buries  everything 
under  its  weight  and  bulk." 

"All  the  same,  I  will  feel  that  I  am  doing  some- 
thing to  help — let's  go !" 

So  Polly  and  her  companion  turned  and  ran  back 
along  the  Rainbow  Cliffs  trail,  until  they  reached 
the  spot  whence  they  had  called  to  Jeb.  They 
stopped  for  a  moment  to  catch  their  breath,  and 
while  straining  their  eyes  towards  the  house,  saw 
Mr.  Brewster  just  leaving  it. 

His  horse  was  waiting  at  the  block,  so  both 
girls  instantly  began  shouting  to  attract  his  atten- 
tion. He  had  keen  hearing,  and  turned  to  see 
what  might  be  wrong  in  the  direction  of  the  Cliffs. 
When  he  saw  the  two  girls  wildly  beckoning  him  to 
come,  he  sprang  into  the  saddle  and  galloped  the 
horse  over  the  intervening  space  to  meet  them. 

Their  story  was  told  in  a  few  words,  and  Sam 
Brewster  immediately  surmised  who  the  riders 
were.  He  told  the  girls  to  go  on  to  the  house  and 
tell  Mrs.  Brewster  to  be  ready  with  emergencies,  in 
case  either  of  the  travelers  were  found.  Then  he 
turned  his  horse  and  galloped  to  the  barns  where 
he  called  several  of  the  men  to  help  in  the  rescue 
work. 

Polly  and  Eleanor  would  have  preferred  to  go 


24o  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

back  to  the  shale-fields  and  watch  the  men,  but 
they  had  to  go  where  they  could  be  of  most  service 
in  the  case. 

"Where  shall  we  put  them,  mother,  if  father 
brings  both  back  to  the  house?"  asked  Polly. 

"There  is  only  one  thing  we  can  do,  and  that  is 
to  prepare  the  cots  in  the  harness-room  for  them. 
It  is  in  times  of  need,  like  this,  that  I  wish  we  had 
a  large  house." 

Down  on  the  shale-fields,  Jeb  had  crept  to  the 
edge  of  the  gully  and  peered  over.  Far,  far  be- 
low, where  the  stream  roared  over  the  rocks  and 
down  waterfalls  like  a  miniature  Niagara,  he  saw 
one  'horse  doubled  up  in  an  unnatural  heap.  He 
surmised  at  once,  that  it  was  dead.  But  half-way 
up  he  spied  hoofs  protruding  from  the  shale,  and  to 
this  spot  he  tried  to  make  his  way. 

As  he  thought,  the  rider  was  still  entangled  with 
the  stirrups  of  the  horse  and  could  not  jump  free 
when  the  accident  had  occurred. 

By  dint  of  working  down,  clinging  like  lichen  to 
the  shale  surface,  Jeb  reached  the  animal  whose 
hoofs  stuck  pathetically  upward.  He  carefully 
scraped  away  the  shale  and  exposed  the  head  of  a 
man.  He  could  not  say  whether  the  victim  was 
alive  or  dead,  and  he  dared  not  dig  away  more 
shale,  just  then,  or  the  whole  side  would  begin  to 


RIGGLEY  &  RATZGER  OF  N.  Y.     241 

move  again.  Having  cleared  the  head  so  the  man 
could  breathe,  if  possible,  he  looked  anxiously 
around  for  the  second  rider.  Not  a  sign  of  him 
was  seen  from  the  place  where  Jeb  clung. 

Believing  that  one  live  man  was  worth  two  dead 
ones,  Jeb  returned  to  the  task  of  unearthing  the  one 
he  had  found.  Every  slab  of  shale  was  slowly  re- 
moved, meanwhile  Jeb  watched  the  loose  sides 
above  him  for  the  least  intimation  that  it  might 
slide  again.  But  so  careful  was  he,  that  the  body 
was  uncovered  without  the  surrounding  shale  be- 
ing disturbed.  Jeb  felt  of  the  man's  heart  and 
found  a  very  slight  pulsation  there.  He  was 
alive ! 

But  how  to  get  his  feet  free  from  the  leather  on 
the  horse,  and  how  to  carry  the  big  heavy  fellow 
up  that  treacherous  side?  Jeb  never  lost  his  pres- 
ence of  mind,  nor  did  he  ever  feel  unduly  excited 
over  what  he  thought  could  not  be  helped ;  had  he 
known  what  a  fatalist  was,  he  would  have  told  you 
that  that  is  what  he  was. 

He  sat  perfectly  still,  because  the  unwary  move- 
ment of  a  single  muscle  might  move  that  mountain- 
side down  upon  him,  but  he  could  think  and  what 
could  hinder  him  from  doing  it?  As  if  the  very 
discovery  that  he  was  superior  in  that  way,  to  the 
senseless  shale  all  about  him,  made  him  master  of 


242  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

the  situation,  so  he  smiled  and  patiently  waited. 

"  'Cuz  Ah  knows  Polly  and  Miss  Nolla'll  get 
word  to  Mis'r  Brews'er  an'  he'll  know  what  to  do 
fer  us."  So  he  sat  and  waited. 

It's  all  well  enough  to  say,  "Oh,  he  wouldn't  do 
anything  else.  Any  one  could  have  waited!" 
But  how  many  would  have  waited  in  that  same 
situation,  without  a  qualm  of  fear,  or  without 
doubting  the  simple  assurance  that  the  master  of 
the  ranch  would  know  best  what  to  do  to  help  ? 

As  if  to  reward  this  faith,  Jeb  soon  heard  voices 
shouting  back  and  forth  above  his  head,  and  after 
a  time,  he  saw  the  noose  of  a  stout  rope  falling 
down  in  his  direction. 

He  grinned.  "Ah  never  thought  of  that!" 
murmured  he. 

"Jeb,"  came  the  deep  tones  of  Mr.  Brewster 
from  above,  utry  to  fix  this  safely  around  you, 
and  then  see  if  there  is  anything  down  there  that 
you  can  do.  Shout  up  if  you  want  help,  and  we 
will  try  to  let  another  man  down  to  work  with 
you." 

Jeb  soon  had  the  rope  about  his  body,  and  feel- 
ing free  to  dig,  went  to  work  to  pull  the  uncon- 
scious man  out  of  the  saddle.  The  side  that  the 
dead  horse  had  fallen  upon  pinned  the  man's  one 
leg  down  so  securely  that  Jeb  could  not  manage 


RIGGLEY  &  RATZGER  OF  N.  Y.     243 

to  extricate  it  without  help.  So  he  held  on  to  the 
body  he  had  thus  far  brought  out  from  the  shalev 
and  then  called  up  to  his  master. 

uAh  cain't  git  his  left  laig  out  from  the  sturrup ! 
This  dead  hoss  is  too  heavy  fer  me  to  shove  over. 
Ef  some  one'll  come  down  an'  use  a  crow-bar  Ah 
reckon  we-all  kin  manage  it  all  right." 

With  all  the  tension  and  doubt  of  being  of  any 
use  in  this  accident,  Mr.  Brewster  could  not  help 
thinking  of  Jeb's  way  of  asking  assistance — as  if 
he  was  in  the  kitchen  of  the  house  and  told  Sary  to 
come  downstairs  to  entertain  him. 

Another  man  was  lowered  by  means  of  a  second 
rope,  and  as  he  came  opposite  the  dead  horse,  he 
called  a  halt  on  the  pulley  above.  With  his  crow- 
bar, he  worked  just  as  carefully  as  Jeb  had  done  in 
loosening  the  shale  about  the  body.  But  the  mo- 
ment Jeb  found  he  could  extract  the  crushed  foot 
from  the  side  that  had  been  buried  in  the  stone, 
the  other  man  ceased  prodding,  as  one  little  prod 
too  many  might  turn  the  whole  loose  lava  upon 
them  again. 

"Lower  another  rope  fer  the  stranger !"  shouted 
the  hired  man.  And  soon  the  limp  body  was 
drawn  slowly  up  to  safety. 

"What  about  the  other  one,  Jeb?"  shouted  Mr. 
Brewster. 


244  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

"Reckon  he  went  on  down,  'cuz  his  hoss  is  down 
thar.  Shall  Ah  go  on  down  and  see  ?" 

"No!  we-all  can  get  down  from  the  Devil's 
Causeway,  without  taking  any  risks  on  this  loose 
wall.  Better  see  if  you-all  can  find  any  papers  or 
wallet  in  the  panniers  of  that  horse." 

Jeb  then  felt  and  brought  forth  a  fine  leather 
bag  shaped  like  a  knap-sack.  But  he  was  not 
aware  that  most  lawyers  and  professional  men  in 
cities  use  similar  bags.  Then  the  word  was  given 
to  hoist,  and  both  men  were  soon  up  beside  the 
unconscious  stranger. 

While  Mr,  Brewster  used  first-aid  on  the 
stranger,  several  men  of  the  party  started  for  the 
cleft  back  of  the  Cliffs  from  which  one  could  get 
down  in  to  the  gulch.  In  fact,  it  was  the  great 
flood  of  water  that  ran  from  the  back  o-f  the  Cliffs 
that  caused  this  deep  washout,  or  gully. 

Having  taken  hold  of  the  unknown  man  and 
suddenly  turned  him  so  that  he  hung  limply  over 
the  back  and  shoulders  of  his  carrier,  Mr.  Brew- 
ster started  his  horse  across  the  shale,  and  then 
turned  in  on  the  Cliff  trail.  The  sooner  the  un- 
conscious man  was  treated  the  better,  thought  the 
ranch-man. 

Jeb  and  his  men  were  left  to  help  the  others 
who,  after  having  carefully  picked  a  way  over  the 


RIGGLEY  &  RATZGER  OF  N.  Y.     245 

shale,  would  search  in  the  gulch  for  any  signs  of 
the  second  man. 

By  the  time  the  would-Jbe  rescuers  reached  the 
place  where  the  dead  horse  was  seen  doubled  up, 
moans  attracted  their  attention  to  a  clump  of  buf- 
falo grass  that  had  forced  its  way  up  beside  the 
stream. 

Thetse,  almost  hidden  by  great  bowlders  that 
had  caught  the  drift  of  shale  as  it  swept  down 
from  the  top  of  the  ravine,  they  found  the  second 
rider.  As  the  horse  was  more  than  forty  feet 
above  this  spot,  they  figured  that  the  man  must 
have  shot  from  the  saddle  when  all  were  precipi- 
tated over  the  top,  and  landed  as  if  by  a  miracle 
in  this  comparatively  safe  niche  made  by  the  rocks. 

The  moment  the  man  heard  human  voices  he 
tried  to  attract  their  attention,  but  they  had  already 
heard  and  planned  how  best  to  reach  him.  He 
could  not  move,  as  those  limbs  which  had  not  suf- 
fered fractures,  were  rendered  helpless  by  the 
weight  of.  shale  pinning  them  down.  His  chest 
was  free,  however,  and  in  spite  of  the  gashes  and 
bruises  all  over  his  face  and  neck,  he  could  breathe 
easily. 

"Ah  i«&ckon  we-all  had  better  carry  him  up  the 
gulch  to  the  Devil's  Causeway,  and  git  out  by  that 
route,"  suggested  one  of  the  men. 


24*  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

"Yeh !  Let's  call  to  Jeb  to  go  back  and  meet  we« 
all  at  the  Cliffs  so's  we  kin  put  him  acrost  one  of 
the  hosses." 

In  half  an  hour,  therefore,  Mr.  Ratzger,  the 
senior  member  of  the  law  firm  of  Riggley  and 
Ratzger,  of  New  York,  was  carried  in  front  of  the 
Rainbow  Cliffs  and  placed  in  Jeb's  arms,  while  an- 
other man  led  Jeb's  horse  carefully  towards  the 
ranch-house. 

"Ah,  so  these  are  Rainbow  Cliffs,  are  they! 
Shall  I  ever  forget  them?  Had  Riggley  listened 
to  my  advice  we  both  would  now  be  sitting  in  our 
comfortable  office-chairs  in  New  York.  But  no ! 
he  must  needs  try  to  force  gold  from  a  stone- 
wall!" As  Ratzger  sighed,  Jeb  remarked  philo- 
sophically: "Ef  you-a\\'d  rather  be  sittin'  at  home 
than  a  galavantin'  round  places  where  money  kin 
be  found,  Ah  b'lieves  it's  the  onny  reason  you-all  is 
spared  whiles  your  friend  is  locooed." 

Ratzger  had  never  heard  the  term  "locooed"  so 
he  was  not  quite  sure  what  Jeb  meant.  But  he 
was  thankful  that  he  had  life  enough  left  even  to 
suffer  with  the  broken  arms  and  legs;  for  a  trifle 
like  that  was  not  to  be  scorned  when  he  might  have 
been  done  for  completely  even  as  he  feared  old 
Riggley  was. 


CHAPTER  XIV 

THE  VICTORY 

SERENELY  oblivious  of  all  the  excitement  that 
had  been  caused  at  Pebbly  Pit  by  the  accident,  Tom 
Latimer  drove  Mr.  Maynard  and  the  happy  be- 
trothed pair  back  to  the  ranch.  John  and  Anne 
sat  on  the  back  seat  while  Mr.  Maynard  sat  beside 
Tom.  Finding  that  John  and  his  fiancee  needed 
no  assistance  from  him  in  entertaining  themselves, 
Tom  gave  his  full  attention  to  the  banker  from 
Chicago. 

Hence,  by  the  time  they  reached  Rainbow  Cliffs, 
Mr.  Maynard  was  like  the  blood-hound  when  he 
scents  a  new  trail — he  was  more  than  anxious  to 
join  these  energetic  men  in  financing  the  vast  pro- 
jects so  well  described  by  young  Latimer. 

At  the  Cliffs  Mr.  Maynard  placed  a  hand  on  the 
lines  in  order  to  stop  the  horses.  He  gazed  and 
gazed,  as  if  he  saw  the  great  walls  covered  with 
gold  dollars  instead  of  colored  stones.  Then  he 
sighed  and  smiled  at  Tom. 

247 


248  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

"This  promises  to  be  the  luckiest  thing  I  ever 
did — sending  Nolla  to  Pebbly  Fit  for  her  health!" 

"And  wait  until  you  see  Nolla !  My,  but  she  is 
rosy  and  roly  now.  And  besides,  Mr.  Maynard, 
she  is  a  born  financier.  I  love  to  listen  to  her 
plan  and  then  see  her  work  out  her  own  schemes. 
She  has  one  on  the  carpet  at  present,  and  I  verily 
believe  she  will  pull  it  off !"  exclaimed  Tom,  very 
much  interested  in  his  subject. 

"Yes,  that  girl  of  mine  is  worth  more  to  me  than 
any  gold-mine  or  other  treasure  in  the  world." 

"Oh,  really!  Well,  this  time  'listening  fools 
heard  some  good  of  themselves',"  laughed  a 
merry  voice  from  a  crevice  in  the  wall,  and  im- 
mediately afterwards,  Eleanor  sprang  out,  with 
Polly  close  upon  her  heels. 

The  horses  were  stopped  until  Eleanor  and  her 
father  had  done  with  their  hugging,  and  then  she 
remembered  to  introduce  him  to  Polly. 

"The  very  best  chum  in  the  world,  Daddy,  and 
so  we  have  sworn  never  to  be  separated — not  even 
for  money,  business,  or  love!"  cried  the  happy 
girl,  maternally  patting  Polly  on  the  head  as  she 
spoke. 

Eleanor  sat  upon  her  father's  knee  and  Polly 
sat  upon  the  floor  of  the  wagon,  as  they  proceeded 
on  their  way,  but  when  John  called  to  his  sister 


THE  VICTORY  249 

and  asked  what  had  been  doing  in  his  absence,  she 
jumped  up  suddenly  and  exclaimed. 

"Oh  I  we  forgot  all  about  the  two  men  who  came 
this  morning  and  fell  over  the  edge  of  the  gulch!" 

Then  followed  an  excited  and  graphic  descrip- 
tion of  the  two  New  York  lawyers  who  came  to 
Pebbly  Pit  to  buy  the  Cliffs.  When  John  heard 
the  names,  he  whistled  and  looked  at  Tom. 

"Well,  even  providence  is  on  your  side,  Polly, 
for  those  two  men  are  the  rascals  who  tried  to 
steal  Evans'  patent  rights  in  the  little  machine  that 
cuts  the  jewels.  So  this  is  the  way  they  were  re- 
ceived at  Pebbly  Pit,  eh?"  Tom  mused  silently 
after  that,  but  John  and  Mr.  Maynard  asked  all 
sorts  of  questions  until  they  reached  the  house. 

In  these  isolated  mountain  ranches,  almost  every 
intelligent  man  can  set  broken  bones,  and  take  care 
of  minor  troubles ;  a  doctor  living  in  a  town  ten  to 
twenty  miles  away,  needs  plenty  of  time  to  reach  a 
ranch,  in  cases  of  illness,  and  during  that  time  a 
patient  must  suffer  agonies  or  be  helped  by  home- 
aid.  Thus,  Mr.  Ratzger  had  his  bones  set  by  Mr. 
Brewster  and  his  assistants,  and  was  left  neatly 
bandaged  upon  a  cot  in  the  harness-room.  But 
the  other  patient  seemed  past  the  simple  aid  from 
the  ranchers,  so  Jeb  had  to  ride  to  Oak  Creek  for 
a  doctor  to  come  and  try  to  save  this  life. 


250  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

With  all  the  sudden  advent  of  excitement  and 
work,  the  thought  of  Anne's  engagement  ring  had 
not  entered  into  any  one's  mind,  but  once  the 
household  had  quieted  down  again,  and  Mr. 
Brewster  could  sit  on  the  porch  and  mop  his  weary 
brow,  John  smiled  knowingly  at  his  fiancee. 

Mrs.  Brewster  caught  the  look  and  interpreted 
it  instantly:  "Oh,  Anne,  dear!  We  never  asked 
you  to  show  us  the  symbol!" 

"Yes,  yes,  Anne !  Let  me  look !"  cried  Eleanor, 
jumping  up  from  the  grass  where  Polly  and  she 
had  thrown  themselves. 

Anne,  with  an  embarrassed  laugh,  held  forth 
her  left  hand  and  displayed  a  beautiful  solitaire. 
"Ahhs!"  and  "Ohs"  and  other  exclamations  of 
admiration  pleased  John  and  Anne  mightly,  and 
both  felt  that  this  mundane  life  was  really  a 
Paradise. 

With  one  accord  it  had  been  agreed  to  postpone 
the  talk  of  Rainbow  Cliffs  and  Choko's  Find  until 
after  supper  that  evening.  By  that  time  the  doc- 
tor would  have  arrived  and  expressed  an  opinion 
about  the  injured  Riggley,  and  see  if  Ratzger  was 
doing  nicely  under  the  home-treatment  given  him. 

"Because  it  makes  me  feel  rather  guilty  to  talk 
over  our  future  plans  about  this  big  combination, 
when  we  know  that  not  far  off  are  two  men  so  fear- 


THE  VICTORY  251 

fully  injured  on  account  of  this  very  fortune," 
added  Mrs.  Brewster,  when  she  heard  the  business 
talk  would  not  take  place  at  once. 

"As  long  as  I  am  here  and  having  such  a  wonder- 
ful rest,  I  would  just  as  soon  wait  for  Latimer  and 
Evans  to  put  in  an  appearance,  before  we  discuss 
finances,"  said  Mr.  Maynard. 

"We'll  have  enough  talk  left  over  to  warm  up 
for  them,"  remarked  Tom,  whimsically. 

"And  we  want  to  get  you  first,  Dad,  and  see  how 
much  money  you  will  put  in.  When  there  are  too 
many  men  about  to  talk  to  at  once,  the  force  of 
our  arguments  will  be  scattered,"  declared  El- 
eanor, nodding  her  head  wisely. 

Every  one  laughed — the  first  hearty  laugh  since 
the  accident  on  the  shale-fields.  And  every  one 
felt  much  better  for  that  laugh. 

"I  tell  you  what,  boys,  isn't  this  girl  of  mine 
a  born  business-brain?"  added  Mr.  Maynard 
fondly  patting  Eleanor  on  the  head. 

"Sure!  That's  why  I  am  going  to  run  the 
business  end  of  Polly's  and  my  company,  while 
she  supplies  all  the  ideals  and  plans  for  the  work," 
asserted  Eleanor. 

"What's  this?  Something  new  on  your  old 
Dad?"  asked  her  father. 

"Not  'very  new;  only  since  1  came  here  and  met 


252  POLLY  AND  ELEANOK 

Polly."  Eleanor  squirmed  away  from  Polly's 
warning  nip  on  the  arm,  and  added:  "You  see, 
Dad,  I  am  bound  to  go  with  Anne  when  she  starts 
for  New  York  to  school — that  has  all  been  settled 
between  us,  hasn't  it?" 

Mr.  Maynard  smiled  indulgently  as  if  to  con- 
cede any  proposition  to  this  child,  and  Eleanor 
continued  with  more  assurance: 

"And  Polly,  having  all  her  hopes  of  attending 
school  in  Denver  blasted  by  Anne  and  her  mother 
going  on  to  New  York,  now  has  decided  that 
the  only  thing  for  her  to  do  is  to  go  with  us  to 
New  York.  It  is  a  wonderful  opportunity  for 
her,  too,  as  she  is  as  determined  to  take  up  In- 
terior Decorating  for  a  profession,  as  I  am.  And 
where  on  earth  can  one  find  such  store-houses 
of  valuable  lore  on  the  subject,  as  right  in  New 
York!" 

Mr.  Brewster  cleared  his  throat  preparatory 
to  an  objection  but  Eleanor  kept  right  on  talking 
fast  and  loud  in  order  to  down  him. 

"After  figuring  the  whole  plan  out,  Polly  and  I 
find  that  we  need  a  few  years  more  of  regular 
school  under  Anne's  tuition;  then  a  few  years  of 
a  special  course  of  decorating  in  a  first-rate  school 
in  New  York — then,  if  we  are  not  too  old,  we  will 
go  abroad  for  a  visit  to  the  art  galleries  in 


THE  VICTORY  253 

Europe.  But  we  may  have  to  give  that  delight- 
ful trip  up  and  turn  right  into  work,  as  we  must 
not  wait  until  old  age  cripples  our  abilities.  So 
you  see " 

"Nolla,  let  me  say  a  word,  won't  you?"  began 
Polly,  seeing  her  father's  expression. 

"No,  Poll,  not  now!  I  have  said  all  I  want  to 
tell  Dad  about  our  future  business  connections, 
and  it  may  influence  him  somewhat  in  going  into 
our  mine  company.  But  now  that  he  knows  just 
what  I  shall  do  from  now  on,  we  can  leave  them 
to  discuss  matters  while  we  go  in  and  look  over 
your  wardrobe  and  see  what  you  will  need  before 
going  to  New  York." 

So  saying,  Eleanor  dragged  Polly  up  from  her 
seat  on  the  grass  and,  by  dint  of  winks  and  tugs, 
made  her  understand  that  it  was  best  for  all  con- 
cerned if  they  were  well  out  of  hearing. 

Tom,  John,  and  Mr.  Maynard  laughed  hearti- 
ly at  Eleanor's  speech  and  manner  of  getting 
Polly  away  from  an  evident  discussion.  Mrs. 
Brewster  and  Anne  exchanged  concerned  glances, 
but  Sam  Brewster  moodily  stared  for  a  few 
minutes  away  at  Rainbow  Cliffs.  Then  quite  sud- 
denly, and  to  the  great  amazement  of  every  one 
present,  he  laughed  and  said,  "To  think  the  new 
woman  has  acquired  such  power  that  centuries  of 


254  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

accepted  habit  is  set  aside  and  the  male  has  to 
fall  in  line  in  the  rebr.  Look  at  me!  I  have 
been  the  Great  Mogul  in  this  family  and  in  all 
Oak  Creek,  too,  until  my  baby  girl  begins  to  talk 
plainly  and  then  she  quietly  pushes  me  out  of  my 
place  and  steps  into  it. 

"And  look  at  Eleanor  Maynard!  Talks  like 
an  experienced  business  potentate  of  forty — yet 
she  is  only  fourteen.  Oh,  I  tell  you  what,  friends, 
we  are  living  in  a  strange  time !"  And  Sam 
Brewster  laughed  again,  a  queer-sounding  laugh 
this.  Every  one  sat  still  and  dreaded  to  say  a 
word.  In  a  few  moments,  he  continued: 

"Here's  a  wonderful  freak  of  nature,  been 
standing  over  there  for  ages  untold;  and  I  settle 
down  beside  those  Cliffs  because  I  can  see  there 
will  be  something  in  them  for  my  children  in  days 
to  come.  But  then,  without  warning,  my  baby 
grows  suddenly  up  and  rears  her  head,  and  de- 
clares 'Those  Cliffs  must  furnish  me  with  money 
to  go  away  from  here.  I  am  of  the  new  order  of 
things,  and  I  must  be  well  prepared  to  meet  my 
fate!'  So  she  packs  her  kit  and  scampers  off  to 
New  York  to  imbibe  the  higher  education  for 
women. 

"Meantime,  her  poor  lonesome  father  re- 
mains behind  in  Pebbly  Pit  and  takes  charge  of 


THE  VICTORY  255; 

the  complete  blasting  of  his  precious  Rainbow 
Hopes.  Ah  well!  Ah  trust  Polly  will  never 
regret  going  to  New  York  with  you-all!" 

As  Sam  Brewster  sighed  and  got  up  to  walk 
away,  his  wife  remarked  quietly:  "Any  one  would 
think,  Sam,  that  Polly  was  your  very  own  person- 
al property.  If  you  could  but  remember  that  she 
has  a  mother  who  loves  her  devotedly  and  is 
silently  breaking  her  heart  right  now,  so  that  the 
child  may  follow  her  own  life-line  without  foolish 
barriers  placed  in  her  pathway!" 

Mr.  Brewster  sent  a  startled  glance  at  his  wife 
and  then  hurried  away  to  the  barns.  But  Mr. 
Maynard  said  fervently:  "There  spoke  the  true 
mother,  Mrs.  Brewster.  That  is  what  we  are 
parents  for,  I  firmly  believe — that  we  may  help 
the  next  generation  to  a  higher  and  firmer  foot- 
hold on  progress.  If  only  there  were  more 
mothers  like  you !" 

Then  John  crept  over  and  flung  his  arm  over 
his  mother's  shoulders.  "Yes,  Mr.  Maynard — 
she  is  great.  And  we  shall  live  to  call  her  'bles- 
sed,' for  this  temporary  parting  from  Polly  will 
soon  be  a  dream  of  the  past,  and  both  father 
and  mother  will  laugh  at  this  talk!" 

Drawing  Polly  into  the  house,  Eleanor  whis- 
pered: "I  know  just  what  you  are  going  to  say, 


256  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

Goody-good!  You  were  ready  to  explode  be- 
cause you  had  not  told  me  any  such  things  as  I 
pretended  you  had.  But,  don't  you  see,  I  had  to 
take  lots  of  things  for  granted  to  put  the  plan 
over  in  a  few  seconds?  Suppose  I  had  started 
out  with  turning  to  you  every  few  moments  for 
approval,  where  would  we  have  ended." 

"That's  what  you  think,  Nolla,  but  let  me  tell 
you  this  much  right  here" — and  Polly  planted 
her  feet  firmly  and  lifted  her  head  upon  her 
proud  neck,  until  Eleanor  stood  admiring  her 
independence — "I  can  talk  for  myself,  every 
time!  Don't  ever  quote  me  again  in  any  thing 
that  I  ever  said  or  did.  You  may  think  it  is  all 
right  because  you  win  out  on  those  grounds,  and 
simply  because  you  never  have  been  taught  prop- 
erly by  your  mother.  But  /  know  better  and  I 
won't  accept  any  victory  won  on  any  other  basis 
than  a  clear  conscience.  Ask  Anne  Stewart 
whether  she  does  not  agree  with  me  on  this  point. 
Now  let  me  tell  you,  that  much  as  I  had  yearned 
to  go  to  New  York  with  you-all  I  cannot  go  be- 
cause you  took  my  personal  rights  from  me.  I 
love  you  and  I  was  crazy  to  leave  home  to  go  to 
school,  but  I  will  never  consent  to  have  any  one 
say  or  act  for  me,  in  any  way,  when  I  am  per- 
fectly able  to  do  so  for  myself." 


THE  VICTORY  257 

"Oh,  Poll!  I  don't  mean  it  that  way — don't 
jou  know  I  only  did  it  to  help  you  out?"  cried 
Eleanor  aghast  at  the  turn  in  events. 

"Who  asked  you  to  help  me  out?"  demanded 
Polly,  her  blue  eyes  emitting  sparks  of  fire. 

"Why — wh — y — you  see  I  had  to  win  your 
father  over!" 

"But  who  told  you  so?  You  know  very  well 
that  it  was  your  own  pride  in  your  ability  to  talk 
that  made  you  take  the  bit  between  your  teeth. 
But  you  will  learn  now,  that  I  intend  driving  my 
own  steed,  and  will  not  allow  others  to  whip  my 
mount!" 

Eleanor  was  silenced  as  she  began  to  review 
the  very  recent  talk  she  had  given  out  on  the  ter- 
race. Polly  was  right! 

"It  hurts  me  to  tell  you  this,  Nolla,  but  it  is  best 
that  we  have  a  clean  slate  from  this  night  on. 
You  are  awfully  clever  and  witty,  too,  but  you 
do  exaggerate  something  terrible!  I  cannot  sit 
tamely  by  and  accept  all  the  things  you  say  of  me 
and  our  plans.  Why,  we  scarcely  said  a  dozen 
words  about  college  and  Europe !" 

"But  I  did  it  all  for  your  sake,"  was  all  Elea- 
nor could  offer  in  self-defense. 

"That's  just  it!  I  will  not  have  any  one  say 
they  had  to  tell  lies  to  help  me  along.  If  I  can't 


258  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

paddle  my  own  canoe  through  the  rapids,  I  can  go 
ashore.  But  I  will  balk  every  time  another  tries 
to  turn  me  from  the  course  I  know  to  be  my  true 
one.  So  there!" 

"Polly  dearest!  Do  you  mean  that  after  all 
I  have  done  to  get  Dad  here  and  win  your 
father's  consent  to  your  going,  that  you  refuse  to 
leave  home — just  because  I  colored  my  words  a 
bit  too  vividly?" 

"You  can  color  your  words  as  rashly  and  with 
as  vivid  colors  as  you  choose,  Nolla,  but  I  say  that 
when  you  begin  to  infer  that  the  coloring  is  of 
my  choosing  and  that  I  am  in  hearty  sympathy 
with  the  way  you  win  out  in  matters,  then  I  will 
balk  and  if  necessary,  deny  it  in  the  future.  I  hate 
color  when  it  is  daubed  on  falsely!" 

Eleanor  stood  self-conscious  of  her  mistakes, 
and  Polly  sent  her  one  sorry  look  and  then  walk- 
ed into  her  room.  Eleanor  did  not  dare  follow 
as  she  was  too  awed  by  her  friend's  honest  speech. 
And  she  admired  Polly  all  the  more  for  daring 
to  tell  her  the  unvarnished  truth  about  her  pro- 
clivity to  prevaricate. 

"It  always  was  my  weak  spot,"  grumbled  Elea- 
nor to  herself,  as  she  walked  slowly  to  the  kitchen 
to  see  if  Sary  was  there  to  keep  her  company. 


THE  VICTORY  259 

But  the  big  cool  kitchen  was  empty,  so  the  girl  sat 
down  in  the  wooden  chair  and  thought. 

"If  I  had  had  a  different  training  maybe  I 
wouldn't  be  so  ready  to  lie,"  murmured  Eleanor. 
Then,  suddenly  sneering  at  herself  she  added: 
"Poor  fish !  Can't  even  accept  what  you  know  is 
a  fact  without  trying  to  blame  it  on  some  one  else. 
You've  scorned  Bob  for  being  such  a  fool,  but 
here  you  are,  ten  times  worse,  because  you  have 
wits  enough  yet  you  pervert  the  use  of  them. 
Eleanor  Maynard,  I  just  feel  as  if  I  wanted  to 
give  you  the  biggest  hiding  you  ever  heard 
of!" 

As  she  knew  of  no  way  in  which  to  inflict  this 
punishment  upon  herself,  she  cried  instead. 
From  a  prolonged  sniffle  that  caused  her  to  wipe 
her  eyes  on  her  dimity  sleeves,  she  began  to  weep 
freely.  And  finally,  heart-broken  sobs  shook  her 
slender  frame.  By  this  time  her  eyes  and  nose 
were  rivers  of  salt-water  and  the  poor  girl  had  no 
handkerchief.  Just  when  she  felt  compelled  to 
turn  up  her  skirt  to  use  the  rufHe  of  her  white  pet- 
ticoat, Anne  came  in. 

"Why,  Nolla!  What  has  happened?" 
"Oo-h,  Anne — I  lost  my  handkerchief!" 
"Is  that  all,  darling  I  Here  use  mine — It's 


260  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

clean.     But  don't  cry  over  a  trifle  like  that.     It 
is  sure  to  be  somewhere  about  the  place." 

Before  Anne  could  dry  the  flooded  eyes  and 
hold  the  bit  of  white  linen  at  Eleanor's  nose,  the 
girl  broke  into  a  merry  laugh — so  close  were 
tears  and  laughter  in  Eleanor's  makeup. 

"Oh,  oh — Arme !  I  didn't  mean  that  that  was 
what  made  me  cry!  But  I  am  so  disgusted  with 
myself — that  is  why  I  am  weeping.  If  some  one 
would  only  whip  me  soundly,  I  would  feel  so 
much  better!" 

"Oh,  I  see!  you're  crying  because  you  are  so 
selfish,  eh?" 

Eleanor  looked  up  astonished.  "Selfish — no, 
I  want  to  be  thrashed,  you  know." 

"And  because  you  cannot  get  what  you  think 
you  want,  you  sit  out  here  and  weep !  Oh  come, 
Nolla !  come  out  on  the  terrace  and  let  your  Dad 
see  how  happy  you  are!" 

The  very  illumination  that  came  with  Anne's 
unexpected  words  choked  the  sobs  in  Eleanor's 
throat,  and  she  meekly  followed  Anne  to  the 
pump  where  cold  water  was  dashed  upon  her  red 
eye-lids.  As  she  dried  her  face  on  a  clean  towel 
that  hung  back  of  the  door,  she  thought:  "Yes, 
sir !  Even  in  howling  for  a  licking  I  was  fooling 
myself  into  believing  I  was  doing  the  right  thing  I 


THE  VICTORY  261 

Oh,  Nolla,  Nolla !  how  much  you  have  to  change 
your  old  ways  of  thinking  and  talking  before  you 
can  feel  as  honest  and  wise  as  Anne  Stewart  or 
Polly  1" 


CHAPTER  XV 

COMINGS   AND  GOINGS 

IT  was  very  late  when  the  doctor  reached  the 
ranch,  that  night,  and  having  examined  the  still 
unconscious  man,  pronounced  his  opinion  to  the 
men  who  had  accompanied  him  from  the  house. 

"It's  a  bad  concussion  on  the  brain,  I  believe, 
following  a  slight  fracture  of  the  skull.  He  has 
suffered  internal  injuries,  too,  from  the  slight  ex- 
amination I  can  make  here.  But  we  can  do  noth- 
ing for  him  under  these  conditions.  He  ought 
to  be  in  a  hospital  in  Denver  where  an  operation 
could  take  place." 

"Would  it  be  a  risk  to  try  and  carry  him 
there?"  asked  John,  anxiously. 

"He  won't  suffer  during  the  trip,  if  that  is  what 
you  mean,  as  he  is  unconscious  of  physical  pain. 
And  the  sooner  he  could  be  operated  upon  the 
better.  He  will  slowly  pass  away  if  left  like 
this,"  returned  the  doctor. 

"But  to-morrow's  Sunday,  John,  and  no  trains 
262 


COMINGS  AND  GOINGS  263 

run  to  Denver  until  Monday  noon,"  said  Tom 
Latimer. 

"There's  the  morning  milk-train,  you  know," 
suggested  the  doctor.  "If  I  explained  the  case, 
they  would  gladly  take  these  men  on  and  turn 
them  over  to  the  physicians  at  Denver." 

"Then  we'd  have  to  get  them  in  to  Oak  Creek 
to-night,"  added  Mr.  Brewster. 

"You'd  have  to  fix  up  some  sort  of  hammocks 
in  the  wagon  to  spare  the  poor  fellows  any  jolts. 
If  it  can  be  done,  I  will  wait  and  ride  back  with 
them,"  said  the  doctor. 

"We'll  turn  the  ranch  inside  out  and  upside 
down  in  order  to  help  in  any  way,"  hastily  assert- 
ed Mr.  Brewster.  Then  turning  to  Jeb,  who 
stood  watching  the  scene,  commanded  him. 

"Jeb,  get  out  the  truck  wagon — the  one  with 
the  chestnut  posts  on  either  side — and  hook  up 
four  of  our  best  horses.  While  Jeb  is  doing  that, 
we  will  get  the  two  hammocks  from  the  girls  and 
fix  up  some  sort  of  mattress  in  each.  These 
hammocks  can  swing  from  the  posts.  I'll  go  with 
the  doctor  and  see  that  no  little  thing  is  over- 
looked." 

"John  and  I  thought  of  going  in,  Mr.  Brewster, 
and  if  three  are  going,  you  would  not  have  to 
take  this  trip  to-night,"  said  Tom. 


264  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

"W-ee-11  I  would  rather  not  use  myself  up 
in  riding  all  night  without  being  able  to  do  any 
good  to  any  one,  if  you  young  men  will  go  in  my 
place,"  Sam  Brewster  sighed. 

"An'  Ah'll  drive  the  four  bosses,  cuz,  yuh  know, 
it's  no  joke  seein'  ahead  of  th'  bosses'  noses  along 
that  trail  in  th'  dark,"  announced  Jeb,  in  a  mat- 
ter-of-course tone. 

"Jeb,  if  you  would!  It  will  be  a  great  relief 
to  know  you  are  driving — you  are  such  a  wizard 
with  a  four-in-hand,"  exclaimed  John,  smiling  sud- 
denly at  Jeb. 

"Wha — Ah  bed  no  idee  you-all  diden  know  Ah 
was  goin'  t'  do  th'  drivin',"  returned  Jeb,  surpris- 
ed at  the  others  for  their  lack  of  comprehension. 

It  was  twelve  o'clock  that  night  when  all  was 
ready  and  the  great  wagon  lumbered  past  the 
ranch-house.  The  women  were  all  grouped  on 
the  porch,  silently  praying  for  the  safe  transpor- 
tation of  the  unfortunate  schemers  from  New 
York. 

"Ah  don't  suppose  we  will  really  know  why 
these  men  came  West  until  Latimer  or  Evans  gets 
here  to  explain,"  said  Mr.  Brewster,  as  the  re- 
maining members  of  the  family  went  indoors. 

"Didn't  you  look  through  the  papers  in  that 


COMINGS  AND  GOINGS  265 

leather  bag?"  asked  Mr.  Maynard  of  his  host. 

"No,  not  when  Ratzger  came  to  and  told  us 
who  they  were.  I  handed  the  bag  to  him  and 
felt  I  had  no  right  to  pry  into  his  secrets — especi- 
ally as  he  acted  so  fearful  of  the  contents  of  the 
wallet." 

"I  suppose  they  hired  those  horses  from  Oak 
Creek,"  ventured  Mrs.  Brewster. 

"Doubtless;  and  I  told  John  to  make  sure  and 
then  ask  Ratzger  what  had  best  be  done  to  settle 
for  them.  If  the  men  have  ample  means  they  can 
pay  the  damages,  but  if  they  haven't,  I  will  pay 
for  them  myself,"  explained  Mr.  Brewster. 

"I  don't  see  why  you  should!  You  had  noth- 
ing to  do  with  their  hiring,  nor  with  anything  con- 
nected with  this  accident,"  said  Mr.  Maynard. 

"No,  but  folks  here-abouts  stick  together  more 
or  less,  and  if  one  has  a  loss,  the  others  generally 
help  out.  Now  I  can  spare  twenty  horses  from 
my  corral  sooner  than  have  a  friend  in  Oak  Creek 
think  I  had  something  to  do  with  his  loss  of  two 
good  saddle  horses." 

"If  every  one  thought  and  acted  like  that,  Mr. 
Brewster,  we  would  bring  in  the  millennium  with- 
out delay,"  Mr.  Maynard  remarked. 

"Ah  feel  happy  to  state  that  Ah  will  never  de- 


266  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

fer  the  coming  of  that  same  millennium  by  any 
trifle  like  a  few  horses  given  away  to  a  less  fortu- 
nate friend." 

All  that  evening  Polly  and  Eleanor  were  as 
cordial  and  chummy  as  ever  to  observers,  but  no 
one  knew  that  the  two  girls  had  changed  places. 
Only  Anns  knew  that  Eleanor  had  been  in  the 
kitchen  weeping,  and  even  she  did  not  know  the 
cause  of  the  tears.  She  fancied  there  had  been  a 
girlish  quarrel  between  the  friends  but  that  would 
soon  be  made  up  again.  So  she  paid  no  further 
attention  to  the  case. 

Eleanor  felt  humbled  by  the  frank  truth  spoken, 
by  Polly,  and  realizing  that  it  was  absolutely  as 
her  friend  had  stated,  she  tried  to  impress  upon 
Polly  that  she  was  repentant  and  would  never 
again  do  or  say  a  thing  that  might  offend. 
Hitherto  Eleanor  had  taken  for  granted  that  she 
was  more  experienced  in  every  way  than  her 
simple  little  friend  of  the  ranch;  and  without 
meaning  to  take  the  upper  hand,  had  actually  as- 
sumed that  position,  until  she  had  reached  the 
point  where  Polly  rebelled  against  this  friendly 
leadership. 

But  after  the  fearless  speech  from  Polly  that 
afternoon,  Eleanor  comprehended  how  far  be- 
hind she  really  was  in  this  warfare  between  ego- 


COMINGS  AND  GOINGS  267 

tism  and  egoism.  She  began  to  understand  that 
the  first  expressed  stubbornness  and  selfishness 
which  eventually  would  result  in  unhappiness  for 
all  concerned;  while  egoism  meant  exactly  what 
Polly  was  trying  to  demonstrate  for  herself — that 
upright  fearless  stand  for  Truth,  and  the  sacrifice 
of  everything  that  interfered  with  the  perfect 
working  out  of  the  highest  good. 

Hence,  without  meaning  to  do  so,  and  in  fact, 
never  realizing  that  it  was  so,  Polly  took  the  lead 
in  everything  after  that  day.  When  with  her 
friend,  Eleanor  seldom  exaggerated  and  never 
took  the  aggressive  attitude  again.  And  with 
others,  she  seemed  to  be  developing  a  quieter  and 
more  lovable  disposition.  But  her  family  and 
friends  declared  it  was  due  to  the  fact  that  she 
was  out-growing  her  torn-boy  habits. 

Sunday  morning  was  far  spent  before  the  family 
met  under  the  oak  trees  for  their  first  meal.  See- 
ing how  late  it  was,  Mrs.  Brewster  and  Sary  de- 
cided to  have  but  two  meals  that  day — a  combi- 
nation breakfast  and  lunch  and  a  good  dinner  and 
supper  about  five  o'clock.  The  very  unusual 
break  in  the  habits  of  other  Sabbaths,  and  the 
various  causes  that  led  to  such  a  change,  kept 
every  one  lounging  quietly  about  the  house  and 
porch. 


268  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

Mr.  Maynard  took  advantage  of  the  restful 
hours,  to  ask  Barbara  just  how  much  money  she 
needed  to  defray  her  expenses  in  camp,  with  her 
mother.  And  in  spite  of  her  mentioning  an  ex- 
orbitant sum,  he  silently  wrote  out  the  check  for 
her. 

Barbara  had  expected  rebellion  and  so  was  pre- 
pared to  argue  that  she  needed  a  new  wardrobe 
for  such  a  select  gathering,  but  finding  her  father 
had  offered  no  resistance,  she  wished  she  had  de- 
manded much  more.  Had  she  but  known  that  the 
only  reason  he  gave  her  what  she  wanted,  was  the 
qualm  of  conscience  he  felt.  He  was  really  glad 
to  have  his  daughter  so  eager  to  join  her  mother 
in  the  East,  so  that  he  would  be  relieved  of  the 
nagging  and  unhappiness  he  was  always  subjected 
to  when  his  wife  and  oldest  daughter  were  with 
him. 

But  there  was  a  sub-conscious  reason,  too,  for 
his  ready  writing  of  the  check.  He  was  as  eager 
to  have  Eleanor  live  with  Anne  and  her  mother  in 
New  York,  as  the  girl  was  to  go  there.  And  this 
unexpected  plan  might  meet  with  various  objec- 
tions from  his  wife  if  she  dreamed  of  the  extra  cost 
it  would  be.  As  he  seldom  came  to  an  open  quar- 
rel with  Mrs.  Maynard,  he  considered  he  was 


COMINGS  AND  GOINGS  269 

placating  both  wife  and  daughter  by  extending 
this  generous  sum  of  money  for  their  pleasures. 
Should  they  offer  strenuous  objections  against 
Eleanor's  plan  to  live  in  New  York,  he  would 
have  one  cudgel,  at  least,  to  use  against  them. 

The  sinking  sun  was  bathing  Rainbow  Cliffs  in 
a  glory  of  color  before  the  echo  of  the  lumbering 
ranch-wagon  was  heard  sounding  across  the  cra- 
ter. Then  every  one  ran  out  upon  the  terrace  to 
watch  the  home-coming  of  the  weary  boys. 

"Was  everything  all  right?"  anxiously  asked 
Mrs.  Brewster,  thinking  of  the  two  poor  suf- 
ferers. 

"Oh  yes;  the  hammocks  served  splendidly,  but 
poor  Ratzger  groaned  continually  because  of  the 
pain  in  his  limbs,"  sighed  John. 

"And  we  had  an  awful  job  carrying  them  from 
the  wagon  to  the  milk-train.  They  both  are 
corpulent  men,  you  know,"  added  Tom. 

"The  docter  went  along  widdem  to  Denver," 
observed  Jeb.  "Gosh!  Ah  wisht  Ah  wuz  a 
doctor,  en  Ah'd  have  gone,  too.  It  wuz  a  free 
ride  fer  him,  yuh-know." 

The  humor  of  the  remark  made  every  one 
smile,  and  Jeb  gazed  from  one  to  the  other  to 
find  out  just  where  he  had  been  witty. 


270  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

"Never  mind,  Jeb;  you  and  Sary  are  going  to 
Denver,  you  know,  for  that  ring,"  whispered 
Mrs.  Brewster,  aside  to  Jeb. 

"It  ain't  the  same.  Sary'll  tote  me  aroun'  jest 
whar  she  wants  to  go,  en  Ah  have  t'  trot  behin' 
her  like  a  poodle  I"  grumbled  Jeb. 

Mrs.  Brewster  understood  immediately.  It 
was  the  call  of  freedom  to  the  male  who  is  soon 
to  be  shackled,  to  have  one  last  fling.  So  she 
whispered  back:  "I'll  see  that  you  get  a  few  days 
off  for  a  nice  visit  there  all  by  yourself.  Perhaps 
we  can  arrange  to  have  you  go  with  the  girls  and 
look  after  their  luggage  on  their  way  to  New 
York." 

At  this  unexpected  offer  of  bliss,  even  if  it  was 
lonesome,  Jeb  grinned  and  shuffled  away  to  drive 
the  horses  to  the  barns. 

As  Jeb  had  to  make  another  trip  to  meet  the 
train  on  Monday  noon  at  Oak  Creek,  he  was 
only  too  glad  when  Tom  announced  that  he  was 
going,  too,  to  meet  his  father  and  Dr.  Evans. 

John  and  Anne  found  so  much  to  say  to  each 
other  before  the  separation  came,  that  they  were 
not  to  be  seen  all  that  day.  Polly  felt  sure  she 
would  find  them  seated  on  the  Imps  at  the  Cliffs, 
if  she  wanted  to  take  the  trouble  to  walk  there. 
But  she  didn't. 


COMINGS.  AND  GOINGS  271 

Mrs.  Brewster  and  Eleanor  were  together, 
talking  over  many  pleasant  secrets,  or  at  least 
Polly  thought  they  must  be  pleasant  from  the 
smiling  countenance  on  her  friend.  Now  and  then 
she  caught  such  words  as  "you  know  all  about 
such  things,  Nolla,"  or  Eleanor  might  say  "she 
will  be  on  top  of  the  heap,  if  I  know  it,  Mrs. 
Brewster,"  so  it  was  evident  that  she,  Polly,  was 
the  subject  of  their  conversation.  But  Polly  her- 
self, felt  little  concern  about  it  all,  as  she  saw  the 
forlorn  expression  on  her  father's  face  as  he  went 
about  his  ranch-duties.  Finally  she  decided  upon 
taking  a  radical  step. 

She  went  to  the  room  where  she  found  her 
meager  wardrobe  displayed  in  every  country-like 
detail.  So  this  was  what  Eleanor  was  planning 
— a  conquest  made  with  fine  clothes  such  as  she 
had! 

"Mother,"  she  began;  "I  have  changed  my 
mind  about  going  to  school.  I  have  decided  to 
remain  here  with  father  and  you." 

"Oh,  Poll !     You  just  can't !"  cried  Eleanor. 

"Why  this  sad  countenance,  daughter,  if  you 
believe  you  will  be  happier  here  than  away?" 
countered  Mrs.  Brewster. 

"Because  I  am  as  miserable  as  Daddy  about 
leaving." 


272  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

Mrs.  Brewster  laughed  merrily,  albeit  she  felt 
no  joy  in  her  soul.  "Then  the  sooner  we  dispel 
this  gloom  by  packing  you  off,  the  better.  I 
haven't  the  slightest  doubt  but  that  you  will  won- 
der at  your  present  attitude,  the  moment  John  and 
Tom  have  gone.  Once  let  every  young  person 
leave  us  here  all  alone  for  the  long  solitary  win- 
ter, and  you  will  eat  your  heart  out  to  think  that 
you  could  have  been  so  mistaken  as  to  refuse  this 
wonderful  opportunity  to  make  something  of 
yourself  and  your  wealth." 

Polly  knew  in  her  heart  that  her  mother  spoke 
the  truth,  but  she  never  dreamed  what  it  cost 
that  mother  to  speak  cheerily  as  she  did  about  her 
only  girl's  going — in  fact,  almost  persuading  her 
to  go.  For  that  wise  mother  had  heard  the  yearn- 
ings in  Polly's  voice  the  day  she  spoke  so  daringly 
of  all  her  ambitions  and  of  her  future.  And  she 
understood  that  this  transitory  spell  of  regret  was 
merely  the  contagion  of  Mr.  Brewster's  woe-be- 
gone  thoughts  and  behavior. 

"I'll  get  after  Sam,  and  that  good  and  plenty!" 
thought  Mrs.  Brewster  to  herself,  as  she  watched 
Polly  with  keen  understanding. 

"Poll,  your  mother  says  Anne  is  to  get  every 
last  dud  you  need  in  the  swellest  shops  in  New 
York.  Because  you  and  I  will  have  plenty  of 


COMINGS  AND  GOINGS          273 

money  for  our  future,  and  we  must  dress  up  to 
our  station.  Your  mother  said  our  success  in  busi- 
ness would  be  influenced,  to  a  great  extent,  by  our 
careful  consideration  of  apparel.  She  is  right." 

"But,  mother,  you  said  to  me,  one  time,  that 
clothes  should  never  occupy  a  woman's  mind," 
Polly  said,  wonderingly. 

"I  was  right  in  saying  so.  I  do  not  believe  in 
having  anything  so  perishable  as  dress  occupying 
anybody's  mind.  But  that  does  not  mean  that 
you  should  become  careless  of  your  appearance 
nor  wear  cheap  and  vulgar  apparel.  I  always 
felt  that  an  individual  expresses  his  own  position 
in  life  by  the  clothes  he  selects  and  wears.  It  is 
generally  a  key  to  one's  character.  You  will  find 
that  any  one  who  has  slip-shod  apparel,  is  careless 
.  in  everything  else  in  life,  and  one  who  dons  gaudy 
attire — cheap  and  destructible — will  soon  show 
you  how  small  a  nature  he  has.  The  same 
with  well-selected  refined  apparel;  one  garbed  in 
the  best,  no  matter  how  many  seasons  they  may 
have  to  wear  the  articles,  will  prove  reliable  and 
conscientious  in  other  ways. 

"Oh,  I  never  dreamed  this  would  end  up  in  a 
sermon !"  Mrs.  Brewster  suddenly  laughed,  and 
then  she  whisked  from  the  room. 

The  new  arrivals  came  at  sun-down,  and  every 


274  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

one  was  eager  to  welcome  Tom's  father,  and  his 
friend  Dr.  Evans.  Both  men  were  made  to  feel 
at  home,  and  as  the  dinner  had  been  kept  waiting 
for  the  past  half-hour,  Sary  lost  no  time  in  shout- 
ing for  every  one  to  "setdown." 

Smiles  on  every  face,  was  the  rule  at  that  meal, 
and  no  one  dreamed  that  Mrs.  Brewster  had 
given  her  spouse  the  worst  "Dressing  down" 
he  had  had  since  they  were  married.  He  laugh- 
ingly  referred  to  it  later  on,  and  confessed  that 
now  he  knew  where  Polly  got  her  "woman's 
rights"  idea,  so  unexpectedly  betrayed  the  day  she 
stood  up  for  herself. 


CHAPTER  XVI 

POLLY  AND  ELEANOR  START  OUT 

"Now  let  us  hear  all  about  those  two  strangers 
from  New  York?"  Mr.  Brewster  reminded  his 
new  guests,  as  they  strolled  away  from  the  table. 

"Well,  it  was  as  much  a  shock  for  us  to  find 
that  they  had  been  here  and  were  now  at  a  hos- 
pital in  Denver,  as  it  was  for  you  to  learn  who 
they  were,"  replied  the  doctor. 

"I  suspected  some  crooked  work  last  week,  but 
I  must  say  that  I  never  thought  they  would  come 
out  here  on  such  a  meager  chance,"  added  Mr. 
Latimer.  "You  see,  it  was  this  way:  I  had  a 
rascal  employed  in  my  office  as  clerk,  but  I  never 
knew  that  he  was  in  constant  touch  w^th  Riggley 
&  Ratzger — in  fact  was  their  stool-pigeon.  He 
was  a  clerk  in  our  offices  just  to  get  daily  informa- 
tion about  patents.  And  thus  the  other  firm  got 
hold  of  many  tips. 

"When  the  Court  upheld  us  in  our  rights,  and 
this  firm  of  crooks  tried  in  other  ways  to  get  that 

275 


276  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

valuable  patent  and  model,  this  clerk  Brown 
made  an  accurate  blue-print  of  the  drawing  we 
always  kept  locked  in  our  safe.  Then  when  he 
heard  of  our  success  in  cutting  the  lava-jewels 
from  the  material  sent  us  from  Pebbly  Pit,  he  did 
everything  to  locate  this  ranch. 

"Had  we  wasted  any  time  in  planning  to  come 
West  and  meet  you  people  here,  I  doubt  not  but 
that  Riggley  &  Ratzger  would  have  had  a  new 
scheme  to  hold  us  up.  But  we  moved  so  swiftly 
after  hearing  from  Kenneth  and  Tom,  that  they 
had  to  catch  breath  to  keep  up  in  the  race. 

"I  am  convinced  that  they  hurried  here  with 
no  set  plans  about  the  future — they  wanted  to 
get  a  hold  on  this  place  so  as  to  try  and  bar  us 
from  immediate  work,  or  perhaps,  to  make  a  for- 
tune out  of  us  by  selling  their  option  to  us.  They 
never  dreamed  that  Latimer  had  a  son  right  here, 
and  that  there  was  a  deeper  cause  for  our  meeting 
you  all  than  mere  business  reasons.  Had  either 
of  these  lawyers  known  about  Montresor  and  that 
mine,  they  would  not  have  spent  so  much  time 
and  money  to  get  here  to  outwit  us. 

"It  is  fortunate  that  the  doctor  kept  those  let- 
ters at  home  where  Brown  could  not  read  and 
copy  them  for  his  firm  of  rascals.  But,  to  tell 
the  truth,  that  was  one  reason  why  Dr.  Evans  was 


POLLY  AND  ELEANOR  START     277 

so  anxious  to  meet  you-all.  We  want  to  hear 
everything  about  the  old  man  and  that  claim." 

As  Mr.  Latimer  finished  speaking,  Dr.  Evans 
said:  "If  you  will  pardon  me,  a  moment,  I  have 
here  a  photograph  taken  of  my  brother-in-law 
just  before  he  left  for  the  Klondike.  Perhaps 
you  will  recognize  something  in  the  face  to  assure 
us  it  was  your  Montresor." 

The  doctor  took  out  his  large  flat  pocket-book 
and  removed  the  card-photograph  wrapped  in 
tissue  paper.  This  was  passed  to  Sam  Brewster, 
who  needed  but  a  glance  to  tell  him  that  the  pic- 
tured face  was  the  same  man  that  he  had  de- 
fended so  valiantly  to  others. 

Polly  ran  over  to  her  father's  side  and  took 
the  picture.  "Oh,  you  dear  old  friend — it  is  our 
Old  Man  Montresor,  sure  enough,  but  his  hair 
was  white  when  we  knew  him !"  she  exclaimed. 

She  impulsively  kissed  the  senseless  card,  and 
every  one  smiled  sympathetically,  even  though 
there  was  a  suspicion  of  moisture  in  most  eyes. 

"I  am  so  glad  to  find  that  he  had  good  friends, 
somewhere,  even  though  he  was  too  proud  to  let 
any  one  know  about  his  relatives.  And  Ken !  I'm 
so  glad  to  know  that  he,  and  you  people,  will  all 
come  in  on  Choko's,  Find — or  to  be  exact,  it  is 
Montresor's  Mine,"  said  Polly. 


278  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

"That's  going  to  be  a  fine  tangle  in  law,  Polly,'* 
remarked  Mr.  Latimer.  "You  see,  Montresor 
made  you  his  sole  heiress,  so  the  mine  rs  yours, 
not  only  by  inheritance,  but  also  by  rediscovery 
after  it  was  lost  in  the  first  land-slide. 

"We  stopped  at  Simms'  office  to-day — that  is 
what  made  us  late — and  learned,  without  a  doubt, 
that  the  two  claims  are  the  same.  As  it  now 
stands,  Polly  and  her  friends  are  claim-jumpers 
on  the  same  claim  that  Montresor  bequeathed  to 
Polly  a  few  years  ago.  And  should  you  all  go 
to  law  over  the  tangle,  the  State  of  Colorado 
would  benefit,  in-as-much  as  the  costs  of  an  end" 
less  suit  would  fill  the  State  coffers."  Mr.  La- 
timer  laughed  at  the  picture  of  such  a  thrilling  law- 
tangle  for  his  unraveling. 

"But  we  are  not  going  to  law,  and  if  that  gold 
is  mine  so  that  no  one  else  has  any  right  to  say 
what  I  can,  or  cannot  do  with  it,  I  shall  do  what 
I  always  planned  to  do  with  it — even  before  Nolla 
and  I  found  it  again.  I  made  up  my  mind  that 
if  ever  one  of  dear  old  Montresor's  relatives  ap- 
peared I  would  go  halves.  And  if  they  wanted 
the  whole  thing — then  they  could  take  it,  rather 
than  fight  for  it.  So  now  I  am  going  to  give  half 
to  your  wife,  right  off,  Doctor,  and  my  other  half 


POLLY  AND  ELEANOR  START     279 

I  will  divide  with  the  girls  who  were  with  me  when 
we  located  it  again."  Polly  was  magnificent  in 
her  earnest  generosity. 

"Why,  Miss  Polly,  my  wife  would  never  ac- 
cept half  of  it.  Ken  wrote  something  of  what 
you  told  him,  and  Mrs.  Evans  told  me  to  be  sure 
to  tell  you  that  you  cannot  give  half  away.  Be- 
sides, the  fact  that  I  will  have  so  many  friends 
willing  to  invest  money  in  this  device  of  mine,  is 
better  than  all  the  gold  in  the  Rockies.  The 
jewel-cutter  is  now  an  assured  success,  and  it  will 
turn  out  dollars  like  a  sausage  grinder  turns  out 
that  toothsome  breakfast  meat." 

Every  one  laughed  at  the  doctor's  funny  com- 
parison, and  he  continued:  "However,  let  us 
hear  from  Tom  and  the  others,  how  they  man- 
aged to  get  down  into  the  cave  if  it  was  buried 
under  such  mountains  of  trash." 

"Oh,  yes,  John!  You  promised  to  tell  us  the 
moment  Mr.  Latimer  and  the  doctor  arrived," 
cried  Eleanor,  eagerly. 

So  without  preamble,  John  began:  "When 
Mike  had  made  a  temporary  camp  for  us  on  Top 
Notch,  he  tried  to  show  Tom  and  me  just  where 
the  cave  had  been.  But  none  other  than  a  clever 
Indian  scout  could  ever  have  found  one  familiar 


280  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

sign  anywhere.  Even  Mike  had  to  hunt  and  dig 
and  trail  around,  again  and  again,  before  he  gave 
a  war-whoop. 

"To  cut  it  short,  I  will  say,  we  found  that  the 
ravine  upon  which  the  cave  opened,  was  com- 
pletely filled  with  trash  and,  in  fact,  there  were 
many  feet  of  earth  and  timber  on  top  of  the  ledge 
so  that  it  would  need  a  great  deal  of  digging  and 
blasting  before  we  could  hope  to  enter  that  cave 
again. 

"But  Tom  and  I  had  not  been  lazy  during  the 
time  Mike  was  seeking  for  some  sign  to  locate 
the  cave.  And  after  we  learned  how  impossible 
it  was  to  enter  the  mine  at  that  side  where  the 
girls  had  gone  in,  Tom  and  I  took  scientific  obser- 
vations with  our  instruments,  and  finally,  after 
tiresome  days,  found  a  rushing  river  that  gushed 
from  some  underground  source. 

"We  immediately  remembered  the  pit  Polly  had 
told  us  of,  and  the  rushing  sound  of  waters  she 
had  heard  when  leaning  over  the  edge  of  the  pit, 
so  we  decided  that  here  we  had  found  the  outlet. 

"We  could  not  determine  how  far  the  river 
traveled  underground  from  the  pit,  until  it  came 
out  in  the  open  again,  but  we  got  Mike  to  come 
with  us,  and,  daring  fellow  that  he  is,  he  crept  into 
the  tunnel  that  hooded  the  stream.  We  tried  to 


POLLY  AND  ELEANOR  START     281 

dissuade  him  from  taking  such  a  risk,  but  he 
grinned  and  said:  'Mike  like  fun.' 

"When  he  returned,  half  an  hour  later,  he 
made  us  understand  that  we  might  follow  quite 
safely.  My !  But  that  was  some  thrill,  eh,  Tom?" 
laughed  John,  shivering  delightfully  at  the  rem- 
iniscence. 

Tom  laughingly  admitted  that  it  was  a  "hair- 
raiser"  and  John  continued:  "We  managed  to  cling 
to  the  narrow  ledge  of  rock  that  was  less  than  a 
foot  above  the  turbulent  water,  and  even  that 
must  have  been  submerged  most  of  the  time,  as  it 
was  damp  and  slippery.  Mike  said  the*  recent 
land-slide  had  had  some  effect  on  lowering  the 
water-line  of  the  river  and  that  was  what  left  the 
rock  exposed. 

"We  crept  slowly  along  this  foot-hold  and  soon 
realized  that  we  were  nearing  some  suction-hole. 
Mike  explained  that  it  was  the  very  tube  that  rose 
to  the  rocky  floor  where  Polly  knelt  that  day. 
I  couldn't  see  where  this  journey  was  going  to 
benefit  us,  but  Mike  knew. 

"Reaching  the  tube  that  slanted  upwards,  so 
that  we  could  see  roots  and  stubborn  vines  grow- 
ing out  of  its  rocky  walls,  we  also  discovered  that 
we  had  a  flat  space  of  more  than  six  feet  square 
on  which  we  were  standing.  Now  Mike  demon- 


282  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

strated  what  he  proposed  doing.  All  our  threats, 
persuasions,  and  anger,  left  no  impression.  He 
smiled. 

"He  made  us  understand  that  he  was  about  to 
scale  the  wall  by  means  of  those  roots  and  vines. 
Should  he  miss  and  fall,  the  rope  he  tied  about  his 
body  would  keep  him  from  being  swept  down  into 
the  current.  He  gave  us  the  end  of  the  rope  to 
fasten  to  our  waists.  When  he  arrived  at  the  top, 
he  would  draw  us  up,  one  after  the  other. 

"He  managed  to  land  on  top,  but  I'll  have  to 
tell  you-all  some  other  time,  all  that  happened  be- 
fore we  reached  the  underground  cave  where  the 
gold  was  shining  from  walls  and  ceiling.  It  i> 
exactly  as  Polly  described  it,  and  we  picked  up  a 
number  of  nuggets  that  were  found  in  the  dust  of 
ages  on  the  stone  floor,  and  then  tried  to  take 
scientific  observations.  Tom  took  a  flash-light  of 
the  cave,  and  we  had  it  developed,  but  it  was  not 
a  howling  success.  Still,  it  shows  something  of 
the  interior. 

"When  we  got  back  to  open  air  again,  we 
noticed  the  vast  mountain-top  that  sat  down  upon 
that  gold-mine.  This  would  have  to  be  removed 
if  we  mined  from  the  top.  But  I  believe  we  can 
manage  to  work  in  through  that  tunnel  and  secure 
the  gold  by  means  of  lifts  in  that  tube.  This  is 


POLLY  AND  ELEANOR  START     283 

a  matter  of  discussion.  The  gold  is  there  and 
it  can  be  gotten  out,  just  so  long  as  Old  Grizzly 
will  behave." 

There  was  a  general  chorus  of  sighs  when  John 
had  concluded  his  story,  and  as  technical  matters 
were  taken  up  by  the  men,  and  in  this  the  girls 
were  not  interested,  they  wandered  away  to  enjoy 
the  twilight. 

During  the  days  that  followed,  Barbara  left 
Pebbly  Pit,  with  no  regrets  on  her  part,  and  not 
very  many  on  the  part  of  her  summer  companions. 
She  was  not  in  her  rightful  place  on  a  ranch,  and 
every  one  was  honest  enough  to  admit  it.  But 
now  she  was  going  to  join  "her  own"  and  she  was 
happy. 

Tom  and  John  were  the  next  to  leave  the  happy 
circle  at  the  ranch.  But  not  until  all  plans  about 
the  incorporating  of  the  two  companies  were  per- 
fected. Each  man  present  at  that  meeting,  sign- 
ing up  liberally  to  supply  the  money  to  launch  the 
two  big  enterprises. 

The  evening  before  John  and  Tom  were  to  go 
back  to  their  engineering  work  with  their  old 
Crew,  Polly  and  Eleanor  were  out  on  the  terrace 
with  Tom,  talking  eagerly  of  the  plans  made  for 
mining  the  ore  from  Choko's  Find.  From  this 
subject  it  was  quite  natural  for  the  girls  to  launch 


284  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

j 

the  subject  of  their  anticipated  winter  in  New  York 
City. 

"I  suppose  you  two  girls  will  see  quite  a  little 
of  Jim  and  Ken,  when  you  arrive  in  New  York," 
ventured  Tom,  wistfully  (or  so  it  seemed  to 
romantic  Eleanor) . 

"They  said  so;  Jim  says  New  Haven  is  not  so 
far  from  New  York  but  that  the  two  of  them — 
I  mean  the  boys  not  the  cities,"  laughed  Polly — 
"may  be  able  to  visit  us  every  week-end.  That 
will  be  great  fun  for  us,  won't  it,  Tom?" 

"I  suppose  so.  I  wonder  if  John  would  care 
for  you  to  see  so  much  of  the  two  boys  as  you 
plan  to,"  replied  Tom,  suggestively. 

"Oh,  John  won't  care!  Why  should  he?"  re- 
torted Polly. 

"Why.  shouldn't  he?  He's  your  brother  and 
you  are  growing  up  to  be  a  young  lady,  Polly; 
you  must  think  of  appearances,  you  know,"  said 
Tom. 

Polly  laughed  merrily.  "Why,  Tom!  One 
would  think  you  were  concerned  about  my  future, 
the  way  you  preach.  Just  like  Daddy  does." 

Eleanor  interpreted  the  speech  to  suit  herself 
and  watched  Tom's  expression  closely.  Tom 
frowned  at  Polly's  laugh  and  bit  his  lip  to  restrain 
himself  from  further  preachings. 


POLLY  AND  ELEANOR  START     285 

"Besides,"  added  Polly,  in  a  few  moments,  "Jim 
is  your  own  kid  brother,  and  Ken  is  his  pal.  You- 
all  say  Ken  is  a  jewel  of  a  boy,  so  why  should  I 
worry  about  appearances'  sake  when  I  am  with 
them?" 

Tom  refused  to  reply  to  her  question,  and 
Polly  quickly  forgot  his  strange  remark.  But 
Eleanor  thought  over  various  little  incidents  of 
the  past  few  days,  and  finally  decided  to  make  a 
radical  move  for  Tom. 

"I'm  going  indoors,  for  a  minute,  children — 
will  you  excuse  me?"  said  she,  starting  to  leave 
the  two  alone. 

"With  the  greatest  of  pleasure !"  declared  Tom, 
laughingly,  to  Eleanor. 

Eleanor  tossed  her  saucy  head  and  winked  at 
Tom  as  she  ran  away.  Tom  flushed  and  won- 
dered just  what  Eleanor  thought  or  what  she  had 
tried  to  make  him  understand  by  that  wink. 

The  moment  Eleanor  had  gone  Tom  turned  to 
Polly  and  said:  "Shall  we  walk  to  the  Cliffs  and 
have  a  last  look  at  the  jewels  in  this  glorious 
moonlight?" 

"Oh  no !"  cried  Polly,  nervously,  as  she  glanced 
at  Tom's  facial  expression,  and  thought  of  the 
tremble  in  his  voice  as  he  spoke. 

"All  right,  then ;  but  I  thought  you  would  want 


286  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

to  remember  just  how  they  looked,  tonight. 
When  you  are  in  that  crowded  city  of  rush  and 
hustle,  it  would  be  a  pleasant  memory." 

"Eleanor  and  I  are  going  to  get  a  snap-shot 
of  them,  tomorrow,  after  you  boys  are  gone,"  ex- 
plained Polly,  in  a  matter-of-fact  tone. 

Tom  smothered  a  sigh  and  was  trying  to  think 
of  some  other  excuse  to  coax  Polly  away  from  the 
nearness  of  the  house,  when  Mr.  Maynard  and 
Mr.  Latimer  strolled  over  to  join  the  two  young 
people.  Polly  turned  to  them  with  a  smiling 
welcome  but  Tom  gnashed  his  teeth  in  impatience 
at  their  untimely  intrusion. 

The  two  men  immediately  began  speaking  of 
the  projects  for  the  incorporated  companies  and 
demanded  so  much  of  Tom's  attention  that  Polly 
managed  to  glide  away  and  go  back  to  the  house. 
This  ended  Tom's  first  attempt  at  romance  with 
Polly,  and  it  was  evident  that  he  disliked  the  in- 
terruption. 

After  Mr.  Maynard,  Mr.  Latimer,  and  Dr. 
Evans  had  gone,  it  was  Anne  Stewart's  turn  to  say 
good-by.  She  was  going  to  Denver  to  see  that 
her  mother  wound  up  all  their  private  affairs,  and 
there  she  would  await  the  coming  of  Eleanor  and 
Polly. 

After  Anne   had   gone,    Mrs.   Brewster   took 


POLLY  AND  ELEANOR  START     287 

Polly  and  Eleanor  to  her  room  and  sat  down  to 
have  a  confidential  talk  with  the  girls.  To  her 
surprise  Polly  found  all  her  ranch-dresses  and 
other  apparel  bundled  up  in  a  loose  roll  with  a 
rope  tied  about  it. 

"Why,  mother!  How  can  I  take  my  clothes 
to  New  York  that  way?"  asked  she,  having 
studied  the  bundle  wonderingly  for  a  time. 

Mrs.  Brewster  laughed.  "You're  not.  These 
are  going  to  some  poor  ranchers'  children  over  at 
Yellow  Jacket  Pass." 

"But,  mother!"  gasped  Polly.  "I  haven't  any- 
thing left  to  wear  in  New  York  I" 

"That's  what  I  wish  to  tell  you  about,  Polly. 
Now  listen  to  what  I  have  already  told  Eleanor 
who  knows  about  these  things  better  than  we  do." 

Then  Mrs.  Brewster  proceeded  to  instruct 
Polly  as  Eleanor  had  suggested  previously 

"I  know  how  foolish  it  appears  to  you,  Polly, 
to  give  much  thought  to  clothes,  because  at  home 
on  the  ranch  it  matters  so  little  what  the  style  is. 
But  once  you  are  in  New  York,  or  any  other  large 
city  where  all  kinds  of  people  are  to  be  found, 
your  appearance  makes  a  great  difference.  You 
are  not  to  take  any  of  your  home-made  ranch 
clothes  with  you,  Polly — not  even  on  the  train  after 
you  leave  Denver.  I  am  going  to  purchase  a 


288  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

neat  tailor-made  suit  at  Denver  for  you  to  wear, 
and  your  old  suit  I  shall  bring  back  home. 

"When  you  reach  New  York  Anne  and  Elea- 
nor have  my  orders  to  attend  to  your  shopping  the 
very  first  thing.  I  want  you  to  go  to  the  very 
best  and  most  exclusive  shops  on  Fifth  Avenue 
above  Forty-second  street  for  all  you  need — and 
many  accessories  that  you  think  you  do  not  need, 
Polly. 

"Remember1  this,  dear,  the  tag  of  the  maker 
of  your  apparel  is  not  the  only  important  mark 
of  an  exclusive  shop — the  principal  mark  is  the 
cut  and  style,  and  these  high-grade  shops  turn  out 
hats,  coats  and  gowns  which  the  other  shops  en- 
deavor in  vain  to  imitate.  That  is  why  one  can  be 
recognized  in  a  way  by  the  clothes  they  wear. 
And  that  is  why  I  insist  upon  your  having  the  best. 

"Another  thing  I  know  to  be  true,  is  this: 
Girls  at  school  (and  I  feel  sure  the  girls  at  your 
exclusive  school  in  New  York  City  will  do  so) 
judge  others  by  the  maker  of  their  clothes.  You 
will  have  no  heart-aches  if  your  clothes  have  the 
best  maker's  name  inside.  It  sounds  small,  Polly, 
but  it  really  is  a  serious  matter  when  you  come  in 
contact  with  small-minded  girls  or  adults. 

"Anne  carries  the  check-book,  Polly,  and  Elea- 


POLLY  AND  ELEANOR  START     289 

nor  carries  the  social  experience  in  dressing  as 
becomes  a  young  lady  of  the  best  society.  You 
must  remember  you  are  that  and  so  you  must 
never  be  ashamed  of  your  apparel.  When  one  is 
so  clothed  that  one  need  not  think  of  dress,  or 
any  apology  for  what  they  have  on,  one  is  at  ease 
and  forgets  about  such  trifles.  That  is  one  good 
argument  for  having  the  best,  Polly — one  for- 
gets oneself." 

Polly  listened  to  her  mother's  wise  remarks 
with  serious  expression,  but  Eleanor  sat  and 
nodded  her  head  approvingly  whenever  Mrs. 
Brewster  made  a  point  that  pleased  the  girl. 
When  Mrs.  Brewster  paused  for  a  moment,  Elea- 
nor spoke  eagerly. 

"My!  Won't  I  just  make  the  gold  from 
Choko's  Find  mine  fly  when  I  select  the  wardrobe 
for  our  Polly!" 

"You  can't  spend  something  you  never  had," 
laughed  Mrs.  Brewster. 

"But  we  will  have  it,  some  day,  soon,"  retorted 
Eleanor. 

"Well,  then,  I'll  spend  it  when  we  get  it,  not 
till  then!"  exclaimed  Polly,  practically. 

"There  speaks  the  logical  one,"  laughed  Elea- 
nor. 


290  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

"Polly  will  have  more  than  enough  in  the  bank 
to  defray  all  bills  while  in  New  York,  Nolla,  with- 
out borrowing  from  the  mine." 

At  last  came  the  day  when  Polly  had  to  say 
good-by  to  her  beloved  pets  on  the  ranch.  Dear 
little  Noddy  followed  her  about  and  would  not  be 
separated  from  her.  It  was  as  if  the  burro  knew 
her  beloved  mistress  was  leaving  home.  And  so 
heart-broken  was  Polly  to  realize  that  she  would 
not  see  her  Noddy  again  for  almost  a  year,  that 
she  took  the  woolly  head  in  her  arms  and  kissed 
the  cold  nose  in  a  fond  farewell. 

Eleanor  stood  by  and  dabbed  her  eyes  with  her 
fist  at  sight  of  such  affection,  but  she  had  to  laugh 
when  Noddy  tried  to  return  that  kiss.  Her  red 
tongue  was  long  and  supple  and  Polly  was  taken 
by  surprise  when  it  curled  about  her  ear. 

And  then  at  last  I  Well,  Sary  refused  absolutely 
to  be  left  at  home  when  she  found  Jeb  was  going 
with  the  family  to  help  Polly  carry  the  bags. 
"What,"  she  exclaimed  to  Mrs.  Brewster  the  night 
before,  "you-all  mus'  think  Ah'm  empty-headed 
to  let  Jeb  go  t'  Denver  alone.  AhVe  hearn  say 
how  gals  go  about  them  streets  lookin'  fer  a 
handsome  young  beau !  No-siree !  Ef  Jeb  goes, 
Ah  goes  tool"  And  she  went! 

Sary  furnished  endless  amusement  to  the  Brew, 


POLLY  AND  ELEANOR  START     291 

star  group  as  the  train  sped  on  its  way  from  Oak 
Creek  to  Denver.  Polly  was  the  only  one  in  the 
circle  who  paid  little  attention  to  the  excited  wo- 
man, for  Polly  had  all  she  could  do  to  keep  down 
her  own  nervous  excitement  because  of  the  won- 
ders of  the  first  train-ride  she  had  ever  had. 

"Ah  d'clar'  to  goodness,  Missus  Brewster,  is 
this  business  runnin'  away?"  exclaimed  Sary,  after 
the  local  had  started  from  Oak  Creek. 

Mrs.  Brewster  sat  in  front  of  Sary  who,  with 
Jeb,  occupied  the  last  seat  in  the  coach.  The 
chosen  seat  was  Jeb's  plan ;  akhough  he  did  not  ex- 
plain to  any  one  that  he  figured  out  it  would  be 
much  better  to  be  near  the  door  in  case  one  had 
to  make  a  quick  exit.  Trains  did  run  off  their 
tracks,  and  also  there  might  be  a  collision.  He 
had  heard  folks  talking  of  these  dreadful  acci- 
dents. 

When  Sary  addressed  her  mistress  with  a  tone 
of  anxiety  in  her  voice,  Mrs.  Brewster  turned  her 
head  and  smiled  reassuringly  as  she  replied: 

"Oh,  no,  Saryl  The  train  hasn't  really  started 
to  go,  as  yet.  Wait  until  we  get  past  these  little 
local  stations,  then  you  shall  see." 

"Wall,  Ah  don't  know  ez  Ah  wants  to  ride  any 
faster.  Ef  the  driver  could  slow  up  a  bit  we-all 
could  enjy  the  country  views  better,"  said  Sary. 


292  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

Eleanor  giggled  and  nudged  Polly  but  Polly 
turned  a  serious  face  to  her  friend.  "Nolla,  I 
think  the  same  as  Sary — I'd  rather  go  slower." 

"Good  gracious,  Polly,  are  you  frightened, 
too?"  exclaimed  Eleanor. 

"No,  but  I  want  to  remember  every  inch  of 
this  grand  country  if  I  am  to  stay  in  New  York 
for  many  months,  you  see." 

Eleanor  understood,  and  left  Polly  to  her  si- 
lent work  of  impressing  her  mind  with  the  views 
she  wished  to  remember,  later;  Sary  would  provide 
enough  entertainment  for  Eleanor  during  the  trip 
to  Denver. 

"Jeb,  what  you-all  clutchin'  at  my  arm  like-as- 
how  you  are?"  now  asked  Sary,  in  no  weak  or  ten- 
der voice. 

"Ah  ain't  clutchin'  nothin',  Sary!"  was  Jeb's 
defense  of  his  manhood. 

"Ah  don't  know  what  you  call  it,  then.  Sit 
up  like  a  regular  traveler,  Jeb,  and  don't  slump  in 
the  seat  like-as-how  your  head  wants  to  duck  from 
some  crash,"  declared  Sary,  heroically  trying  to 
lift  Jeb's  courage  by  gripping  his  coat  collar  and 
hoisting  him  almost  out  of  his  badly  fitting  coat- 
Eleanor  smothered  a  laugh  but  said  nothing  to 
disturb  the  vaudeville  she  was  enjoying.  Mr.  and 


POLLY  AND  ELEANOR  START     293 

Mrs.  Brewster  were  talking  earnestly  about  the  fu- 
ture of  their  daughter. 

Suddenly  Polly  cried  thrillingly:  "Oh,  look, 
everybody!  We're  coming  to  a  torrent,  and  the 
train  won't  slow  up  !" 

Sary  instantly  turned  to  the  window  and  saw 
what  seemed  to  be  an  unavoidable  end  of  all 
earthly  things,  so  she  half  rose  from  the  seat  and 
grabbed  Jeb  in  her  ample  embrace.  "Ef  we  go, 
we  goes  together,  Jeb!" 

Her  voice,  never  soft  and  melodious,  now  rose 
above  the  whistle  of  the  engine  just  as  it  reached 
the  high  bridge  over  the  stream.  Jeb's  small 
head  was  completely  hidden  by  the  unexpected  pro-, 
tection  thrust  upon  him,  but  Eleanor  had  no  idea 
of  thus  missing  the  pleasure  of  watching  Jeb's 
face  when  the  train  should  cross  the  bridge. 

"Look — look,  Jeb  and  Sary!  We're  riding 
over  the  water!"  she  cried. 

Thus  induced,  Sary  left  Jeb's  head  to  its  fate 
and  quickly  sought  the  cause  of  Eleanor's  excite- 
ment. The  amazing  experience  of  being  on  a 
vehicle  that  glided  directly  over  a  rushing  stream 
of  water  while  there  was  no  apparent  land  to  up- 
hold the  vehicle,  held  Sary  and  Jeb  spell-bound. 

When  the  train  reached  land,  once  more,  and 


294  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

was  steaming  along  its  way,  Sary  sighed  audibly 
and  whispered  to  Jeb:  "Did  you-all  ever  know 
sech  doin's  went  on  when  one  traveled?" 

But  Jeb  was  too  surprised  to  make  a  sound. 
He  sat  and  stared  from  the  small  window  of  the 
car  without  even  having  heard  his  fiancee's  words. 

The  conductor  had  passed  through  the  car  many 
times  since  the  Brewster  family  boarded  the  train, 
and  when  the  last  local  station  had  been  left  be- 
hind and  he  had  punched  all  the  tickets  of  the 
passengers  on  that  trip,  he  entered  the  car  and  sat 
upon  the  arm  of  the  seat  just  opposite  Sam  Brew- 
ster, in  order  to  converse  with  the  man  every  one 
about  Oak  Creek  knew  so  well. 

Having  no  stops  to  make  for  a  long  stretch, 
and  the  track  running  on  a  level  line  for  many 
miles,  the  engineer  increased  the  speed  of  his  en- 
gine with  corresponding  results  in  Sary's  anxiety. 
She  stepped  over  Jeb's  obstructing  feet  and  made 
madly  for  the  conductor,  taking  that  worthy  man 
quite  by  surprise. 

"See  here,  Mr.  Boss,  Ah  ain't  going  to  pay 
fer  no  ticket  to  ride  on  a  runaway  injun!  It's 
your  job  to  get  up  front  and  see  what's  ailin'  this 
car.  Ef  it's  locooed  you'd  better  cut  loose  from 
th'  injun — come  along!" 

And  before  the  amazed  conductor  or  Mr.  Brew- 


295 

ster  could  resist  or  explain,  Sary  had  the  man  by 
the  shoulder  and  was  actually  lifting  him  along 
the  aisle  towards  the  door. 

"Hi,  there,  Sary!  Stop  that!"  shouted  Sam 
Brewster,  jumping  up  and  trying  to  rescue  the 
poor  victim  from  Sary's  mighty  hold. 

"Ain't  it  so,  Mister  Brewster?  We-all  paid 
good  money  fer  this  joy-ride,  an'  we-all  ain't  got 
nothin'  from  it  but  jumpin'  nerves,  so  far!" 

Every  one  but  the  poor  conductor  laughed 
heartily  at  Sary's  complaint.  But  Mr.  Brewster 
persuaded  Sary  to  loose  her  prisoner  and  let  him 
collect  his  scattered  senses;  when  the  shaken  man 
was  able  to  once  more  think  reasonably,  he  gave 
Sary  one  look  and  disappeared  from  that  coach, 
nor  did  he  venture  his  head  inside  the  door  again, 
until  he  had  to  take  up  all  the  tickets. 

The  eventful  trip  finally  ended  when  the  local 
pulled  into  Denver  station;  the  Brewster  party 
lost  no  time  in  leaving  the  train  and  threading  a 
way  through  the  crowds  at  the  waiting-room. 
They  were  to  go  directly  to  Anne  Stewart's  house 
where  luncheon  would  be  waiting  for  them. 

"Well,  friends !  glad  to  see  you  I"  called  Anne, 
as  she  welcomed  the  travelers.  "Come  right  in 
and  meet  mother." 

Introductions  over,  Mrs.  Stewart  led  the  way  to 


296  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

the  cozy  little  dining-room  where  the  table  was 
ready-spread  for  the  luncheon. 

"I  didn't  pretend  to  provide  much,  Mrs.  Brew- 
ster,"  explained  Mrs.  Stewart,  "because,  you  see, 
the  house  is  rented  furnished  for  two  years  and  I 
could  not  leave  a  pan  full  of  soiled  dishes  and 
crumbs  of  food  about  for  my  new  tenant  to  clear 
away.  Of  course,  the  lady  is  an  old  neighbor  of 
mine,  and  would  understand  how  hurried  we  are 
to-day  in  order  to  get  off  on  the  afternoon  train 
for  New  York;  still  I  never  like  to  do  things 
wrong." 

"Now  see  here,  Miss  Stewart,"  declared  Sary 
who  had  overheard  the  remark,  "you-all  jes'  go 
along  to  the  cars  an'  leave  me  to  do  up  the  work." 

"No,  Sary,  this  is  your  great  holiday  in  Den- 
ver," contradicted  Mrs.  Brewster,  "and  Jeb  wants 
to  fit  that  engagement  ring  on  your  finger,  you 
know;  after  lunch,  you  get  away  with  Jeb  and  see 
the  city  while  I  do  up  the  dishes  and  help  Mrs. 
Stewart  dress  and  get  ready  to  leave." 

That  was  a  merry  although  hurried  luncheon. 
Immediately  after  the  cake  and  tea  were  finished, 
Jeb  and  Sary  started  away  to  hunt  the  ring;  but 
many  were  the  admonitions  sent  after  them  as 
they  left  the  door,  to  be  on  hand  at  the  railway 


TOLLY  AND  ELEANOR  START     297 

terminal  to  see  Polly  and  her  friends  off  for  New 
York. 

Mrs.  Brewster  and  her  husband  cleared  away 
the  remains  of  the  luncheon  while  Mrs.  Stewart 
and  Anne  completed  their  packing  and  dressed 
for  the  long  trip  to  the  East.  Everything  in  con- 
nection with  the  lease  and  the  inventory  of  furni- 
ture had  been  attended  to  before  this  day,  so  there 
were  really  no  errands  or  work  left  to  be  done 
at  the  last. 

Finally  Mrs.  Stewart  locked  the  door  and  gave 
the  key  to  a  next-door  neighbor  who  had  offered 
to  keep  it  until  the  tenant  called  for  it ;  then  good- 
bys  were  said  to  the  congregated  friends  of  Anne 
and  her  mother's,  and  at  last  the  party  started 
for  the  station  where  the  New  York  train  was 
scheduled  to  leave  at  five  o'clock. 

"Dear  me,  I  do  hope  Sary  and  Jeb  will  be  there 
on  time,"  sighed  Mrs.  Brewster,  with  a  worried 
frown. 

"Don't  worry  about  them,  Mah,  because  I'll 
say  they  have  been  waiting  for  us  this  last  hour," 
laughed  Sam  Brewster. 

"Sary  wouldn't  give  Jeb  a  moment's  piece  until 
she  got  that  ring,"  added  Anne  Stewart,  laugh- 
ingly, "and  once  she  had  it  she  would  never  give 


298  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

him  another  moment's  peace  until  she  had  shown 
it  to  every  one  of  us !" 

"Anne's  right,  mother,"  giggled  Polly,  nodding 
her  head  wisely. 

And  so  it  turned  out.  When  the  Brewster  party 
reached  the  station  in  Denver,  and  before  Sam 
Brewster  could  seek  for  his  two  servants  Sary 
shouted  so  that  every  one  at  that  end  of  the  build- 
ing heard  her. 

"Here  we-all  be,  Mr.  Brewster!  Jeb  an'  me's 
be'n  lookin'  out  f  er  you-all  this  last  hour !  Come 
right  on,  and  see  mah  ring!" 

Eyes  turned  in  the  direction  of  the  voice  and 
there  stood  Sary,  perched  upon  one  of  the  benches 
in  order  to  look  over  the  heads  of  the  people  who 
stood  about  in  groups  or  who  kept  going  and  com- 
ing through  the  station.  She  was  waving  her  hand 
wildly  to  attract  the  attention  of  her  party.  Elea- 
nor laughed  so  hysterically  at  the  sight  that  she 
could  hardly  stand,  but  Polly  dragged  her  along 
after  the  others  until  they  reached  Sary  and 
Jeb. 

"Ah  d'clar'  to  goodness,  folks!  This  city  is 
one  big  camp,  all  right!"  vouchsafed  Jeb,  his  eyes 
wide  enough  to  pop  at  the  great  adventure. 

"Don't  you-all  go  talkin'  of  sech  things,  Jeb, 
when  we-all  got  more  important  things  to  do," 


POLLY  AND  ELEANOR  START     29$ 

was  Sary's  scathing  criticism,  as  she  gave  Jeb  a 
shove  to  quiet  him.  "Here — jest  you-all  look  at 
this  diamond!  Three  times  bigger'n  Anne  Ste- 
wart's! Pull  off  that  glove,  Anne,  and  le's  see 
mine  and  your'n  side  by  side!"  exclaimed  Sary, 
eagerly. 

Anne  laughed  but  complied  with  the  challenge. 
Two  hands  were  compared — a  small  white  hand 
with  polished  nails  and  with  a  sparkling  diamond 
Chining  upon  the  third  finger  of  the  left  hand, 
and  a  large-boned  red  hand  with  stubby  nails  on 
the  fingers,  but  one  finger  displaying  a  great  Rhine- 
stone set  so  high  that  it  would  have  been  a  menace 
had  Sary  tried  to  use  her  fist  on  an  enemy.  Jeb 
stood  by  grinning  widely  at  the  praise  bestowed 
upon  him  for  his  choice  of  the  largest  stone  in 
the  department  store. 

"Cost  some  cash,  that  stone,  eh  Jeb?"  chuckled 
Sam  Brewster. 

"Bet  chure  life,  Boss !"  was  Jeb's  snappy  reply. 

Eleanor  now  pulled  Sary's  head  down  in  order 
to  whisper  into  her  ear.  "Sary,  when  you  get 
back  to  Pebbly  Pit,  Mrs.  Brewster  will  give  you 
a  pile  of  finery  I  left  for  your  trousseau.  You 
will  be  delighted  to  get  the  laces  and  other  trim- 
mings for  your  hope-box." 

"Ah,   Nolla,  won't  ah,  jest!      An*  when  Ah 


300  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

comes  to  Noo  York  to  see  you-all,  you  won't  know 
me  in  my  fine  togs!"  was  Sary's  eager  reply. 

"Oh !  were  you  expecting  to  come,  Sary?"  Elea- 
nor asked. 

"Shure  thing,  Nolla.  Onct  Ah'm  married 
Ah'm  goin'  to  travel  every  year!"  exclaimed  Sary. 

"New  York's  a  long  way  off  from  here,  Sary," 
ventured  Eleanor. 

"Oh,  Ah  don't  mean  to  say  Jeb  an'  me'll  go 
thar  fust.  Ah'm  goin'  to  figger  on  takin'  a  side 
trip  to  Chicargo  fust,  you  know.  Mebbe  you  kin 
fix  it  so's  we-all  kin  visit  your  maw  whiles  we-all 
stop  at  that  town,  Nolla.  An'  nex'  time  we-all 
kin  go  on  to  Noo  York,  like-as-how  Ah  said." 

Eleanor  caught  her  breath  at  this  astounding 
news.  The  picture  of  Barbara  and  her  mother 
receiving  Sary  and  Jeb  proved  too  much  for  her 
risibles  and  she  laughed  merrily  as  she  replied 
to  Sary's  announcement. 

"Sary,  if  Jeb  and  you  would  honor  our  house 
with  a  visit,  I'd  tell  Daddy  to  look  after  you-all. 
But  you  must  let  me  know,  first,  so  my  father  can 
meet  you  two  and  see  that  you  are  shown  about 
in  true  style." 

"Nolla,  that  Ah  will,  when  we-all  get  time  to  go 
thar.  Ah  says  to  mahself,  jest  the  other  day,  Ah 
ain't  never  had  no  fun  or  chanct  to  better  mah- 


301 

self,  Ah  says :  'Sary  Dodd,  when  you  get  Jeb  you 
plan  to  go  about  like-as-how  Anne  Stewart  is  do- 
in'.'  Nolla,  thar  ain't  nuthin'  like  a  bit  of  travel 
to  polish  folks  up,  is  thar  now?" 

"You're  right,  Sary!  Just  exactly  right," 
laughed  Eleanor. 

But  Sam  Brewster  was  now  heard  calling  Elea- 
nor that  the  train  was  ready  and  the  gates  were 
opened,  so  Sary  caught  Jeb  by  his  sleeves  and  fol- 
lowed after  the  others  when  the  entire  group 
started  for  the  New  York  train. 

One  would  think,  to  hear  Sary's  excited  tones, 
that  she  was  about  to  take  the  long,  long  journey 
from  which  there  is  no  returning;  but  once  Anne 
Stewart  and  her  charges  were  aboard  the  long 
Pullman  train,  the  ones  who  remained  behind 
stood  upon  the  platform  waiting  for  the\  girls  to 
find  their  compartments  and  open  the  windows 
in  order  to  converse  until  the  last  moment. 

Sam  Brewster  went  over  to  a  guard  and  asked 
several  questions,  then  he  hurried  back  and  said 
to  his  party:  "We  can  go  aboard  for  a  few 
minutes,  as  the  train  will  not  pull  out  for  seven 
or  eight  minutes.  Do  you  care  to  see  how  Polly 
will  be  located  for  the  trip?" 

With  motherly  concern  Mrs.  Brewster  followed 
her  husband,  and  in  order  to  be  experienced  when. 


302  POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 

that  trip  east  was  to  be  taken,  Sary  dragged  Jeb 
after  the  Brewsters. 

"Wall,  suh!"  breathed  Sary,  when  Eleanor 
demonstrated  where  the  beds  were  hidden,  and 
what  the  push  buttons  were  for,  and  how  the 
window  shades  ran  up  or  down  on  springs !  She 
could  hardly  believe  her  eyes  when  she  was  told 
about  the  convenience  of  modern  traveling. 

"All  out  not  going  East!"  came  a  loud  call 
from  the  colored  porter  at  the  end  of  the  Pullman, 
so  Sam  Brewster  turned  and  hugged  Polly  until 
she  almost  choked. 

"Come  out,  Sary — bring  your  man!"  ordered 
Sam  Brewster  in  a  harsh  tone,  madly  dabbing  his 
eyes  with  a  fist,  as  he  left  Polly  to  her  mother. 

"Jeb,  Jeb !  Come  along — er  we-all'll  get  taken 
along  the  trip!"  cried  Sary,  excitedly,  trying  to 
force  Jeb  ahead  of  her  as  she  stumbled  out  of 
the  Pullman  after  Mr.  Brewster. 

The  sight  of  big  Sary  urging  little  Jeb  out  to 
safety  was  so  funny  that  every  one  had  to  laugh 
in  spite  of  tears  at  the  parting,  so  that  Sary  actu- 
ally accomplished  a  great  thing — she  turned  the 
sadness  at  Polly's  leaving  her  parents  into  a  merry 
laughing  scene  for  every  one. 

Once  the  four  who  were  to  remain  behind  were 
on  the  platform  again,  the  four  in  the  Pullman 


POLLY  AND  ELEANOR  START    303 

gazed  from  their  windows.  Polly  suddenly  re- 
membered one  last  order  about  her  ranch-home. 

"Paw,  don't  you  or  Jeb  ever  forget  to  do  for; 
Noddy  just  what  I  would  do  if  I  was  home,'* 
was  her  choking  command. 

"No  danger,  Poll!  Little  Noddy  will  be  my 
own  pet  charge,  now.  It's  all  Ah  will  have  at 
the  old  crater  to  tell  me  about  you!"  called  Sam 
Brewster1  as  the  conductor  signaled  the  engineer 
to  start  the  engine. 

At  this  crucial  moment  Jeb  remembered  an  im- 
portant letter  with  which  he  had  been  intrusted. 
He  made  a  wild  search  in  his  pockets  and  as  the 
train  slowly  pulled  away  from  the  Brewster  group, 
he  found  it.  He  gazed  distractedly  at  the  car 
window  where  Polly's  face  was  flattened  against 
the  wire-netting,  then  instant  action  possessed  him. 
His  faculties  began  to  exert  themselves. 

"Hey,  there !  Mister  Conductor,  stop  that  car 
'cause  Ah  got  a  big  fat  letter  for  Polly!"  Jeb 
shouted  with  all  the  power  his  small  frame  could 
produce  in  such  a  hurry,  but  the  conductor  heard 
him  not. 

"Stop  that  car!  Oh,  jumpin'  rattlesnakes — 
won't  you-all  stop  that  car?"  His  yearning  was 
pitiful  but  the  car  cared  naught. 

"Here,  here,  Jeb!  what  is  the  matter  with  you- 


304          POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 


"  called  Mr.  Brewster,  just  as  Jeb  took  a  long 
breath  and  planned  to  sprint  after  the  train. 

"It's  a  good-by  letter  a  friend  left  with  me  for 
Polly,  Mr.  Brewster,  an'  now  Ah  done  gone  and 
clean  forgot  it!"  wailed  Jeb. 

"Too  late  now,  Jeb.  We'll  change  the  address 
and  send  it  on  to  her  New  York  hotel.  It  will 
reach  her  almost  as  soon  as  she  gets  there,"  ex- 
plained Mrs.  Brewster. 

"Yeh!  Wall  now,  Ah  wouldn't  have  believed 
that."  So  Jeb  placed  the  letter  that  Polly  never 
received  in  his  coat  pocket  and  lost  it  that  same 
evening  in  the  excitement  of  catching  the  local 
out  of  Denver. 

Consequently,  when  the  New  York  train  pulled 
slowly  out  of  the  Denver  Terminal,  with  Polly 
and  her  companions  on  board  trying  to  get  a  last 
look  of  dear  ones  left  on  the  platform  of  the 
station,  the  only  glimpse  to  be  had  of  Mr.  and 
Mrs.  Brewster  was  their  squirming  desperately, 
now  this  side,  now  that,  of  Sary's  ponderous 
form.  And  Sary,  who  had  planted  her  bulk  un- 
expectedly in  front  of  them,  held  her  arm  high 
above  her  head,  and  slowly  waved  her  hand  in 
farewell  back  and  forth  in  the  rays  of  the  sun. 
But  her  gaze  was  not  following  the  moving  train. 
Instead  it  was  riveted,  like  a  bird  hypnotized  by 


3<>5 

a  serpent,  upon  a  10  carat  rhinestone  engagement 
ring  that  sparkled  from  the  index  finger  of  her 
red  right  hand. 

The  last  coach  of  the  train  vanished  and  the 
two  Brewsters  sighed.  Then  they  saw  Sary  still 
waving  her  hand,  oblivious  of  all  else  about  her. 
Jeb  stood  gaping  at  her  queer  actions  wondering 
if  she  might  be  "ofl  in  her  head."  But  the  smite 
on  his  master's  face  reassured  him.  As  Mrs. 
Brewster  murmured,  "Sary,  that's  all !"  the  proud 
possessor  of  die  ring  came  to  earth  again. 

But  it  was  not  all!  Because  "Polry  and  Elea- 
nor in  New  York"  had  so  many  interesting  ex- 
periences in  this  great  city  that  it  will  take  another 
book  to  tell  about  them. 


THE  END 


Would  you  like  to  know  what 
became  of  the  good  friends  you 
have  made  in  this  book? 

Would  you  like  to  read  other 
stories  continuing  their  adventures 
and  experiences,  or  other  books 
quite  as  entertaining  by  the  same 
author  ? 

On  the  reverse  side  of  the  wrap- 
per which  comes  with  this  book, 
you  will  find  a  wonderful  list  of 
stories  which  you  can  buy  at  the 
same  store  where  you  got  this  book. 

Don't  throw  away  the  Wrapper 

Use  it  as  a  handy  catalog  of  the  books 
you  want  some  day  to  have,  ^ut  in 
case  you  do  mislay  it,  write  to  the 
^Publishers  for  a  complete  catalog. 


THE  POLLY  BREWSTER  SERIES 

By  LILLIAN  ELIZABETH  ROY 

Durably  Bound.     Illustrated.     Colored  Wrappers. 
Every  Volume  Complete  in  It&tetf. 

A  delightful  series  for  girls  in  which  they  will  fol- 
low PoUy  and  Eleanor  through  many  interesting 
adventures  and  enjoyable  trips  to  various  places  in 
the  United  States,  Europe  and  South  America, 

POLLY  OF  PEBBLY  PIT 
POLLY  AND  ELEANOR 
POLLY  IN  NEW  YORK 
POLLY  AND  HER  FRIENDS  ABROAD 
POLLY'S  BUSINESS  VENTURE 
POLLY'S  SOUTHERN  CRUISE 
POLLY  IN  SOUTH  AMERICA 
POLLY  IN  THE  SOUTHWEST 
POLLY  IN  ALASKA 

GROSSET  &  DUNLAP,    PUBLISHERS,    NEW  YORK 


GIRL    SCOUTS   SERIES 

By  LILLIAN  ELIZABETH  ROY 
Author  of  the  " Polly  Brewster  Books" 

Handsomely  Bound.     Colored  Wrappers.     Illustrated 
Each  Volume  Complete  in  Itself. 

Here  is  a  series  that  holds  the  same  position  for  girls  that 
the  Tom  Slade  and  Roy  Blakeley  books  hold  for  boys. 
They  are  delightful  stories  of  Girl  Scout  camp  life  amid 
beautiful  surroundings  and  are  filled  with  stirring  adventures. 

GIRL  SCOUTS  AT  DANDELION  CAMP 

This  is  a  story  which  centers  around  the  making  and  the 
enjoying  of  a  mountain  camp,  spiced  with  the  fun  of  a  lively 
troop  of  Girl  Scouts.  The  charm  of  living  in  the  woods,  of 
learning  woodcraft  of  all  sorts,  of  adventuring  into  the  un- 
known, combine  to  make  a  busy  and  an  exciting  summer 
for  the  girls. 
GIRL  SCOUTS  IN  THE  ADIRONDACK^ 

New  scenery,  new  problems  of  camping,  association  with 
a  neighboring  camp  of  Boy  Scouts,  and  a  long  canoe  trip 
with  them  through  the  Fulton  Chain,  all  in  the  setting  of 
the  marvelous  Adirondacks,  bring  to  the  girls  enlargement 
of  horizon,  new  development,  and  new  joys. 
GIRL  SCOUTS  IN  THE  ROCKIES 

On  horseback  from  Denver  through  Estes  Park  as  far  as 
the  Continental  Divide,  climbing  peaks,  riding  wild  trails, 
canoeing  through  canyons,  shooting  rapids,  encountering  a 
landslide,  a  summer  blizzard,  a  sand  storm,  wild  animals, 
and  forest  fires,  the  girls  pack  the  days  full  with  unforget- 
able  experiences. 
GIRL  SCOUTS  IN  ARIZONA  AND  NEW  MEXICO 

The  Girl  Scouts  visit  the  mountains  and  deserts  of  Ari- 
zona and  New  Mexico.    They  travel  over  the  old  Sante  Fe 
trail,  cross  the  Painted  Desert,  and  visit  the  Grand  Canyon, 
Their  exciting  adventures  form  a  most  interesting  story. 
GIRL  SCOUTS  IN  THE  REDWOODS 

The  girls  spend  their  summer  in  the  Redwoods  of  Cali- 
fornia and  incidentally  find  a  way  to  induce  a  famous  mo- 
tion picture  director  in  Hollywood  to  offer  to  produce  a 
film  that  stars  the  Girl  Scouts  of  America. 

GROSSET  &  DUNLAP.    PUBLISHERS,    NEW  YORK 


THE    LILIAN    GARIS    BOOKS 

Attractively  Bound.    Illustrated.  Individual  Colored  Wrappers. 
Every  Volume  Complete  in  Itself. 

Lilian  Garis  is  one  of  the  writers  who  always 
wrote.  She  expressed  herself  in  verse  from  early 
school  days  and  it  was  then  predicted  that  Lilian 
Mack  would  one  day  become  a  writer.  Justifying 
.this  sentiment,  while  still  at  high  school,  she  took 
charge  of  the  woman's  page  for  a  city  paper  and  her 
work  there  attracted  such  favorable  attention  that  she 
left  school  to  take  entire  charge  of  the  woman's  page 
for  the  largest  daily  in  an  important  Eastern  city. 

Mrs.  Garis  turned  to  girls*  books  directly  after  her 
marirage,  and  of  these  she  has  written  many.  She 
believes  in  girls,  studies  them  and  depicts  them  with 
pen  both  skilled  and  sympathetic. 

BARBARA  HALE:  A  DOCTOR'S  DAUGHTER 
BARBARA  HALE  AND  COZETTE 
GLORIA:  A  GIRL  AND  HER  DAD 
GLORIA  AT  BOARDING  SCHOOL 
JOAN:  JUST  GIRL 
JOAN'S  GARDEN  OF  ADVENTURE 
CONNIE  LORING'S  AMBITION 
CONNIE  LORING'S  DILEMMA 

GROSSET  &  DUNLAP,          PUBLISHERS,          NEW  YORK 


CAROLYN    WELLS    BOOKS 

Attractively  Bound.     Illustrated.     Colored  Wrappers. 

THE  MARJORIE  BOOKS 

Marjorie  is  a  happy  little  girl  of  twelve,  up  to 
mischief,  but  full  of  goodness  and  sincerity.  In  her 
and  her  friends  every  girl  reader  will  see  much  of 
her  own  love  of  fun,  play  and  adventure. 
MARJORIE'S  VACATION 
MARJORIE'S  BUSY  DAYS 
MARJORIE'S  NEW  FRIEND 
MARJORIE  IN  COMMAND 
MARJORIE'S  MAYTIME 
MARJORIE  AT  SEACOTE 

THE  TWO  LITTLE  WOMEN  SERIES 

Introducing  Dorinda  Fayre— a  pretty  blonde, 
sweet,  serious,  timid  and  a  little  slow,  and  Dorothy 
Rose— a  sparkling  brunette,  quick,  elf-like,  high 
tempered,  full  of  mischief  and  always  getting  into 
scrapes. 

TWO  LITTLE  WOMEN 
TWO  LITTLE  WOMEN  AND  TREASURE 

TWO  LITTLE  WOMEN  ON  A  HOLIDAY^ 
THE  DICK  AND  DOLLY  BOOKS 

Dick  and  Dolly  are  brother  and  sister,  and  their 
games,  their  pranks,  their  joys  and  sorrows,  are  told  j 
in  a  manner  which  makes  the  stories  "really  true"  * 
to  young  readers. 

DICK  AND  DOLLY 

DICK  AND  DOLLY'S  ADVENTURES 

GROSSET  &  DUNLAP,     PUBLISHERS,    NEW  YORK 


AMY  BELL  MARLOWE'S  BOOKS 
FOR  GIRLS 

Charming,  Fresh  and  Original  Stories 
Illustrated.   Wrappers  Printed  in  Colors  with  individual  design  for  each  story 

Miss  Marlowe's  books  for  girls  are  somewhat  of  the 
type  of  Miss  Alcott  and  also  Mrs.  Meade  ;  but  all  are 
thoroughly  up-to-date  and  wholly  American  in  scene 
and  action.  Good,  clean  absorbing  tales  that  all  girls 
thoroughly  enjoy. 

THE  OLDEST  OF  FOUR  ;  Or,  Natalie's  Way  Out. 

A  sweet  story  of  the  struggles  of  a  live  girl  to  keep  a  family  from  want. 
THE  GIRLS  AT  HILLCREST  FARM  ;  Or,  The  Secret  of  the  Rocks. 

Relating  the  trials  of  two  girls  who  take  boarders  on  an  old  farm. 
A  LITTLE  MISS  NOBODT  ;  Or,  With  the  Girls  of  Pinewood  Hall. 

Tells  of  a  school  girl  who  was  literally  a  nobody  until  she  solved  the 
mystery  of  her  identity. 

THE  GIRL  FROM  SUNSET  RANCH  ;  Or,  Alone  in  a  Great  City. 

A  ranch  girl  comes  to  New  York  to  meet  relat'ves  she  has  never  seen. 
Her  adventures  make  unusually  good  reading. 

WYN'S  CAMPING  DAYS  ;  Or,  The  Outing  of  the  GO-AHEAD  CLUB. 

A  tale  of  happy  days  on  the  water  and  under  canvas,  with  a  touch  of 
mystery  and  considerable  excitement. 

FRANCES  OF  THE  RANGES  ;  Or,  The  Old  Ranchman's  Treasure. 

A  vivid  picture  of  life  on  the  great  cattle  ranges  of  the  West. 
THE  GIRLS  OF  RIVERCLIFF  SCHOOL  ;  Or,  Beth  Baldwin's  Resolve. 

This  is  one  of  the  most   entertaining  stories  centering  about  a  girl's 
school  that  has  ever  been  written. 

WHEN  ORIOLE  CAME  TO  HARBOR  LIGHT. 

The  story  of  a  young  girl,  cast  up  by  the  sea,  and  rescued  by  an  old 
lighthouse  keeper. 

WHEN  ORIOLE  TRAVELED  WESTWARD. 

Oriole  visits  the  family  of  a  rich  ranchman  and  enjoys  herself  immensely. 

WHEN  ORIOLE  WENT  TO  BOARDING  SCHOOL. 

How  this  brave  girl  bears  up  under  the  most  trying  experiences,  makes 
a  very  interesting  story. 

GROSSET  &  DUNLAP,   Publishers,  NEW  YORK 


THE  OUTDOOR  GIRLS  SERIES 

By  LAURA  LEE  HOPE 

Author  of  the  "Bobbsey  Twins,"  "Bunny  Brown"  Series,Etc. 

Uniform  Style  of  Binding.     Individual  Colored  Wrappers. 
Every  Volume  Complete  in  Itself. 

These  are  the  tales  of  the  various  adventures  par- 
ticipated in  by  a  group  of  bright,  fun-loving,  up-to-date 
girls  who  have  a  common  bond  in  their  fondness  for 
outdoor  life,  camping,  travel  and  adventure.  They  are 
clean  and  wholesome  and  free  from  sensationalism. 

THE  OUTDOOR  GIRLS  OF  DEEPDALE 
THE  OUTDOOR  GIRLS  AT  RAINBOW  LAKE 
THE  OUTDOOR  GIRLS  IN  A  MOTOR  CAR 
THE  OUTDOOR  GIRLS  IN  A  WINTER  CAMP 
THE  OUTDOOR  GIRLS  IN  FLORIDA 
THE  OUTDOOR  GIRLS  AT  OCEAN  VIEW' 
THE  OUTDOOR  GIRLS  IN  ARMY  SERVICE 
THE  OUTDOOR  GIRLS  ON  PINE  ISLAND 
THE  OUTDOOR  GIRLS  AT  THE  HOSTESS 

HOUSE 

THE  OUTDOOR  GIRLS  AT  BLUFF  POINT 
THE  OUTDOOR  GIRLS  AT  WILD  ROSE  LODGE 
THE  OUTDOOR  GIRLS  IN  THE  SADDLE 
THE  OUTDOOR  GIRLS  AROUND  THE  CAMP- 
FIRE 

THE  OUTDOOR  GIRLS  ON  CAPE  COD 
THE  OUTDOOR  GIRLS  AT  FOAMING  FALLS 
THE  OUTDOOR"GIRLS  ALONG  THE  COAST 
THE  OUTDOOR  GIRLS  AT  SPRING  HILL  FARM 

GROSSET  &  DUNLAP,   Publishers,  NEW  YORK 


THE  BLYTHE  GIRLS  BOOKS 

By  LAURA  LEE  HOPE 

Individual  Colored  Wrappers  and  Text  Illustration*  by 

THELMA  GOOCH 
Every  Volume  Complete  in  Itself 

The  Blythe  girls,  three  in  number,  were  left  alone  in 
New  York  City.  Helen,  who  went  in  for  art  and  mu- 
sic, kept  the  little  flat  uptown,  while  Margy,  just  out 
of  a  business  school,  obtained  a  position  as  a  private 
secretary  and  Rose,  plain-spoken  and  businesslike,  took 
what  she  called  a  "job"  in  a  department  store. 

THE  BLYTHE  GIRLS :  HELEN,  MARGY  AND  ROSE 

A  fascinating  tale  of  real  happenings  in  the  great  metropolis 

THE  BLYTHE  GIRLS :  MARGY'S  QUEER  INHERITANCE 

The  Girls  had  a  peculiar  old  aunt  and  when  she  died  she  left 
an  unusual  inheritance. 

THE  BLYTHE  GIRLS:  ROSE'S  GREAT  PROBLEM 

Rose,  still  at  work  in  the  big  department  store,  is  one  day  faced 
with  the  greatest  problem  of  her  life. 

THE  BLYTHE  GIRLS :  HELEN'S  STRANGE  BOARDER 

Helen  goes  to  the  assistance  of  a  strange  girl,  whose  real  iden- 
tity is  a  puzzle.  Who  the  girl  really  was  comes  as  a  tremendous 
suprise. 

THE  BLYTHE  GIRLS :  THREE  ON  A  VACATION 

The  girls  go  to  the  country  for  two  weeks — and  fall  in  with  al»l 
sorts  of  curious  and  exciting  happenings. 

THE  BLYTHE  GIRLS:  MARGY'S  SECRET  MISSION 

Of  course  we  cannot  divulge  the  big  secret,  but  nevertheless 
the  girls  as  usual  have  many  exciting  experiences. 

THE  BLYTHE  GIRLS:  ROSE'S  ODD  DISCOVERY 

A  very  interesting  story,  telling  how  Rose  aided  an  old  man  in 
the  almost  hopeless  search  for  his  daughter. 

GROSSET  &  DUNLAP,  Publishers,   NEW  YORK 


A     000  050  930     7 


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